Bingo: remote caller bingo.

(1) The California Constitution allows the Legislature, by statute, to authorize cities and counties to provide for bingo games for charitable purposes. The California Remote Caller Bingo Act permits cities and counties to allow bingo games and remote caller bingo games, as defined, to be conducted by specified organizations for charitable purposes pursuant to an ordinance that allows those games to be conducted only in accordance with specified requirements. Existing law includes school districts among the organizations authorized to conduct bingo games, and includes charitable organizations affiliated with a school district among the organizations authorized to conduct remote caller bingo games. This bill would delete the reference to school districts in the provisions specifying the organizations that may conduct bingo games and would instead authorize charitable organizations affiliated with a school district to conduct bingo games. The bill would set forth a model ordinance to authorize remote caller bingo. The bill would make other conforming changes. (2) The act requires the California Gambling Control Commission, by May 1, 2009, to adopt emergency regulations concerning remote caller bingo and card-minding devices, effective for an initial period of 180 days, and permits one readoption of those emergency regulations for an additional period of 180 days. The commission is directed to complete the normal public notice and comment process, giving careful consideration to the comments of all interested parties. This bill, instead, would provide that all emergency regulations adopted by the commission pursuant to these provisions before July 1, 2009, shall remain in effect until December 31, 2011, except to the extent that the commission exercises its power to adopt, amend, or repeal those regulations in whole or in part. The bill would delete the requirement that the commission complete the normal public notice and comment process. (3) The act provides that an organization authorized to conduct a remote caller bingo game shall not have overhead costs, as defined, exceeding 20% of gross sales. This bill would provide that fees paid to financial institutions for the use and processing of credit card sales may be deducted from the amount of gross revenues awarded for prizes and not included in overhead costs, as provided. (4) The act requires an organization that conducts a remote caller bingo game to have the records pertaining to those games audited at least annually by an independent California certified public accountant and for copies of the audit report to be provided to the California Gambling Control Commission. This bill would provide that the audit report shall account for the annual amount of fees paid to financial institutions for the use and processing of credit card sales and the amount redirected from overhead costs, as provided. (5) The act requires the California Gambling Control Commission to establish reasonable criteria regulating, and to require the licensure and registration of, specified persons, including any person who provides services or equipment designed for use in the playing of remote caller bingo games by any nonprofit organization registered to conduct those bingo games. This bill would delete the requirement that the commission establish criteria for the registration of the persons described above. (6) The act requires the commission to establish reasonable criteria for, and to require the licensure and registration of, any person who provides card-minding devices or other equipment or services designed for use in the playing of bingo games by any nonprofit organization registered to conduct bingo games. This bill would delete the requirement that the commission establish criteria for the registration of the persons described above. (7) This bill would make various technical, nonsubstantive changes to the provisions governing remote caller bingo games. (8) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.