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An Act To Create Fairness in Gaming License Fees for Small Nonprofit Organizations
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 17 MRSA §1834, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 487, Pt. A, §2, is amended to read:
 
2. Operation of games of chance.   Except for electronic video games and games of cards as provided in this section, the fee for a license to operate a game of chance is $15 for each week computed on a Monday to Sunday basis or for a portion of a week. The fee for a license issued for a calendar month is $60 and the fee for licensesa license issued for a calendar year is $700, except that when an organization with a net revenue of less than $10,000 for the prior year applies for a license issued for a calendar year, the fee is $175.
 
The Chief of the State Police may issue any combination of weekly or monthly licenses for the operation of games of chance. Except for games of cards as provided in subsection 4, licenses to conduct any authorized game of chance may be issued for a period of up to 12 months on one application.
Sec. 2. 17 MRSA §1834, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2013, c. 218, §1, is further amended to read:
 
4. Games of cards.   The fee for a license issued to an organization to operate a game of cards, when the organization charges no more than a $10 daily entry fee for participation in the games of cards and when no money or valuable thing other than the $10 daily entry fee is gambled by any person in connection with the game of cards, is $30 for each calendar year or portion of a calendar year, except that for an organization with a net revenue of less than $10,000 for the prior year, the fee is $7.50. For card games that are played by placing the maximum bet of $1 per hand or deal, the license fee is the same as provided in subsection 2.
Sec. 3. 17 MRSA §1836, sub-§3-A, ¶A, as amended by PL 2013, c. 306, §1, is further amended to read:
 
A. For tournament games that do not exceed 100 players:
 
(1) Seventy-five dollars per tournament license;
 
(2) Two hundred dollars for a monthly license; and
 
(3) Fifteen hundred dollars for an annual license, except that for an organization with a net revenue of less than $10,000 for the prior year, the fee is $375; and
 
SUMMARY
This bill reduces by 75% the annual fee for a license to conduct games of chance and games of cards, including tournament games, for organizations with net revenues from those activities of less than $10,000 for the prior year.