Senate Bill sb0104c1

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 104

    By the Committee on Regulated Industries and Senator Geller





    315-1670-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the operation of cardrooms;

  3         amending s. 849.086, F.S.; authorizing a

  4         permitholder to amend a license renewal

  5         application in certain circumstances;

  6         prescribing licensing requirements when more

  7         than one permitholder uses the same facility;

  8         providing cardroom license fees; revising

  9         standards on when cardrooms may be operated and

10         the amount of bets allowable for each round,

11         hand, or game; authorizing facilities to award

12         prizes; revising the rate of the gross receipts

13         tax on admissions; revising the amount of

14         cardroom receipts that must be used to

15         supplement greyhound and jai alai purses;

16         providing an effective date.

17

18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

19

20         Section 1.  Paragraphs (b) and (d) of subsection (5),

21  subsections (7) and (8), and paragraphs (a) and (d) of

22  subsection (13) of section 849.086, Florida Statutes, are

23  amended to read:

24         849.086  Cardrooms authorized.--

25         (5)  LICENSE REQUIRED; APPLICATION; FEES.--No person

26  may operate a cardroom in this state unless such person holds

27  a valid cardroom license issued pursuant to this section.

28         (b)  After the initial cardroom license is granted, the

29  application for the annual license renewal shall be made in

30  conjunction with the applicant's annual application for its

31  pari-mutuel license. Any permitholder that has operated a

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 104
    315-1670-01




  1  cardroom during the previous fiscal year and neglected to

  2  include a renewal request for the operation of its cardroom

  3  with its annual license renewal application is entitled to

  4  amend its annual application for such operation. In order for

  5  a cardroom license to be renewed the applicant must have

  6  requested, as part of its pari-mutuel annual license

  7  application, to conduct at least 90 percent of the total

  8  number of live performances conducted by such permitholder

  9  during either the state fiscal year in which its initial

10  cardroom license was issued or the state fiscal year

11  immediately prior thereto, or, if a harness permitholder

12  cardroom application, to conduct a minimum of 140 live

13  performances during the state fiscal year immediately prior

14  thereto, or, if more than one permitholder is operating at a

15  facility, each of the permitholders must have applied for a

16  license to conduct a full schedule of live racing or games.

17         (d)  The annual cardroom license fee for each facility

18  shall be $1,000 for the first table and $500 for each

19  additional table to be operated at the cardroom.  This license

20  fee shall be deposited by the division with the Treasurer to

21  the credit of the Pari-mutuel Wagering Trust Fund.

22         (7)  CONDITIONS FOR OPERATING A CARDROOM.--

23         (a)  A cardroom may only be operated at the location

24  specified on the cardroom license issued by the division, and

25  such location may only be the location at which the

26  pari-mutuel permitholder is authorized to conduct pari-mutuel

27  wagering activities pursuant to such permitholder's valid

28  pari-mutuel permit or is otherwise authorized by law and

29  current license.

30         (b)  A cardroom may be operated at the facility only

31  when the facility is authorized to accept wagers on

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 104
    315-1670-01




  1  pari-mutuel events during its authorized meet.  A cardroom may

  2  begin operations within 2 hours prior to the post time of the

  3  first pari-mutuel event conducted live at the pari-mutuel

  4  facility on which wagers are accepted by the facility and must

  5  cease operations by 2 a.m. on the following day within 2 hours

  6  after the conclusion of the last pari-mutuel event conducted

  7  live at the pari-mutuel facility on which wagers are accepted.

  8         (c)  A cardroom operator must at all times employ and

  9  provide a nonplaying dealer for each table on which authorized

10  card games which traditionally utilize a dealer are conducted

11  at the cardroom.  Such dealers may not have any participatory

12  interest in any game other than the dealing of cards and may

13  not have an interest in the outcome of the game.  The

14  providing of such dealers by a licensee shall not be construed

15  as constituting the conducting of a banking game by the

16  cardroom operator.

17         (d)  A facility that operates a cardroom may award

18  giveaways or prizes to players who hold combinations of cards

19  specified by the cardroom operator.

20         (e)(d)  Each cardroom operator shall conspicuously post

21  upon the premises of the cardroom a notice which contains a

22  copy of the cardroom license; a list of authorized games

23  offered by the cardroom; the wagering limits imposed by the

24  house, if any; any additional house rules regarding operation

25  of the cardroom or the playing of any game; and all costs to

26  players to participate, including any rake by the house.  In

27  addition, each cardroom operator shall post at each table a

28  notice of the minimum and maximum bets authorized at such

29  table and the fee for participation in the game conducted.

30         (f)(e)  The cardroom facility shall be subject to

31  inspection by the division or any law enforcement agency

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 104
    315-1670-01




  1  during the licensee's regular business hours.  The inspection

  2  will specifically encompass the permitholder internal control

  3  procedures approved by the division.

  4         (g)(f)  A cardroom operator may refuse entry to or

  5  refuse to allow to play any person who is objectionable,

  6  undesirable, or disruptive, but such refusal shall not be on

  7  the basis of race, creed, color, religion, sex, national

  8  origin, marital status, physical handicap, or age, except as

  9  provided in this section.

10         (8)  METHOD OF WAGERS; LIMITATION.--

11         (a)  No wagering may be conducted using money or other

12  negotiable currency.  Games may only be played utilizing a

13  wagering system whereby all players' money is first converted

14  by the house to tokens or chips which shall be used for

15  wagering only at that specific cardroom.

16         (b)  The cardroom operator may limit the amount wagered

17  in any game or series of games, but the maximum bet The

18  winnings of any player in a single round, hand, or game may

19  not exceed $2 $10 in value. There may be no more than three

20  raises in any round of betting. The fee charged by the

21  cardroom for participation in the game shall not be included

22  in the calculation of the limitation on the bet pot size

23  provided in this paragraph.

24         (13)  TAXES AND OTHER PAYMENTS.--

25         (a)  Each cardroom operator shall pay a tax to the

26  state of 2 10 percent of the cardroom operation's monthly

27  gross receipts.

28         (d)  Each greyhound and jai alai permitholder that

29  which operates a cardroom facility shall utilize at least 10 4

30  percent of such permitholder's cardroom monthly gross receipts

31  to supplement greyhound purses or jai alai prize money,

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 104
    315-1670-01




  1  respectively, during the permitholder's next ensuing

  2  pari-mutuel meet.  Each thoroughbred and harness horse racing

  3  permitholder that which operates a cardroom facility shall

  4  utilize at least 50 percent of such permitholder's cardroom

  5  monthly net proceeds as follows:  47 percent to supplement

  6  purses and 3 percent to supplement breeders' awards during the

  7  permitholder's next ensuing racing meet.

  8         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.

  9

10          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
11                              SB 104

12

13  Allows permitholders that operated a cardroom in the previous
    fiscal year but did not renew its request to amend its annual
14  application to include cardroom operations.

15  Provides criteria for when harness racing permitholders may
    apply for a cardroom license.
16
    Modifies the location where a cardroom may be operated to the
17  location the permitholder is authorized to conduct pari-mutuel
    wagering activities pursuant to its valid permit or its
18  otherwise authorized by law.

19  Expands when a facility may operate a cardroom to anytime it
    is authorized to accept wagers on parimutuel events.
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