Indicates Matter Stricken

Indicates New Matter

 

Amended

May 1, 2025

 

H. 4137

 

Introduced by Reps. B. J. Cox, Caskey, T. Moore, B. L. Cox, Wooten and Bustos

 

S. Printed 5/1/25--H.                                                                     [SEC 5/5/2025 10:24 AM]

Read the first time March 5, 2025

 

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A bill

 

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 12-21-3920, RELATING TO BINGO TAX ACT DEFINITIONS, SO AS TO ADD THE DEFINITIONS OF "VETERANS' TRUST FUND" AND "VETERANS' ORGANIZATION"; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-21-4020, RELATING TO CLASSES OF BINGO LICENSES, SO AS TO ADD A CLASS G LICENSE FOR VETERANS' ORGANIZATIONS; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-21-4030, RELATING TO ENTRANCE FEE SURCHARGES, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A CLASS G LICENSE HOLDER MAY IMPOSE A CERTAIN ENTRANCE FEE; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-21-4070, RELATING TO DOMICILES REQUIRED FOR LICENSE, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT AN INDIVIDUAL MUST BE DOMICILED IN THIS STATE FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD BEFORE APPLYING FOR A LICENSE; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 12-21-4190, RELATING TO BINGO CARD CHARGES, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE DEPARTMENT SHALL CHARGE AND RETAIN CERTAIN FEES.

    Amend Title To Conform

 

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

 

SECTION 1.  Section 12-21-3920 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

 

    (22) "Veterans' Trust Fund" means the fund established in Section 25-21-10.

    (23) "Veteran's organization" means any individual post or state headquarters of a national veteran's association or an auxiliary unit of any individual post of a national veteran's association, which post, state headquarters, or auxiliary unit is incorporated as a nonprofit corporation and either has received a letter from the state headquarters of the national veteran's association indicating that the individual post or auxiliary unit is in good standing with the national veteran's association or has received a letter from the national veteran's association indicating that the state headquarters is in good standing with the national veteran's association. As used in this item, "national veteran's association" means any veteran's association that has been in continuous existence as such for a period of at least five years and either is incorporated by an act of the United States Congress or has a national dues-paying membership of at least five thousand persons.

    (24) "American Heroes Bingo" or "game" means a specific game of chance, commonly known as bingo, in which prizes are awarded based on designated numbers or symbols on an electronic card conforming to numbers or symbols selected at random. American Heroes Bingo uses a caller to draw balls from a cage. A new drawing of bingo balls is to be drawn daily or once the game-ending pattern is called. The caller or automatic aid inputs the resulting ball draw sequence into a location-based server via electronic interface. The player then utilizes an electronic bingo aid to purchase, play, and daub electronic cards based on the outcome of the ball draw sequence. The electronic bingo aid then communicates to the player using various stimuli of visual and audial queues if the electronic card has accurately achieved a preannounced configuration match.

    (25) "Electronic card" means a nonprinted design, which may include an electronic representation on which there are arranged five horizontal rows and five vertical columns forming twenty-five squares. Numbers are printed in twenty-five of the squares. The five columns are denominated from left to right and must be a minimum of one-half inch by one-half inch.

    (26) "Location-based server" means a computer server that is physically located on the licensed premises of the veteran's organization. The location-based server is used in connection with the electronic bingo aids to accurately identify instances of preannounced configuration matches and nonmatches. The location-based server is not connected to any other location-based server.

    (27) "Electronic bingo aids" means an electronic device used in connection with a location-based server that will identify, display, and communicate bingo outcomes accurately via automatic electronic daub. The electronic bingo aid may be equipped with currency and voucher equipment which allows for additional purchases of electronic cards and provides for a voucher or other medium considered to be appropriate to redeem prizes won in the bingo game via a medium from the electronic bingo aid. The location-based server maintains track of the player's credit balance, while the electronic bingo aid displays the same information. The electronic bingo aid must show an electronic representation of the bingo card on screen while the player is using the device. Electronic bingo aids are excluded from the definitions included in Chapter 21, Title 12 and Chapter 19, Title 16.

    (28) "Net hold" means the total revenue, coin, currency, tickets, or equivalent placed into the electronic bingo aids or otherwise paid by players, less any prizes paid out to players.

    (29) "Vendor" means any individual, firm, association, limited liability company, or corporation that was a resident of, or domiciled in this State for a period of two years or more before January 1, 2026, that provides electronic bingo aids to a veteran's organization

 

SECTION 2.  Section 12-21-4020 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

 

    (7)(a) CLASS G: A veteran's organization operating an American Heroes Bingo game offering prizes, which do not exceed fifty thousand dollars per game, shall obtain a Class G bingo license at a cost of one thousand dollars. The holder of a Class G license may not conduct more than six bingo sessions a week.

           (b) Not withstanding anything in this article to the contrary, American Heroes Bingo must be played in the following manner, and the following procedures apply to the conduct of the game:

              (i) American Heroes Bingo is played by a player and a caller, the latter of which is associated with the veteran's organization. Each player may pay face value for each electronic card to be played during a game and may purchase additional electronic cards during the course of a session.

              (ii) Before each game begins, the potential winning patterns are available to view by the players of the configuration or configurations that will win the game. A configuration consists of a number of grids covered in the manner and sequence announced by the caller. Any method of playing the game is allowed if the method is shown before each game's beginning and prominently displayed in the facility. The configuration or configurations must be prominently visible on the electronic bingo aids.

              (iii) The caller shall draw and announce numbers from the cage one at a time. After the number is announced, it must be prominently displayed on the master board and on the electronic bingo aids.

              (iv) A player then uses an electronic bingo aid to purchase electronic cards, participate in the game via electronic daub, and redeem prizes. The electronic bingo aid communicates to the player if the electronic card played has accurately achieved a preannounced configuration match using various visual and audial stimuli. The location-based server adjusts the player's credit balance as required by the results of the game and the electronic bingo aid displays this information to the player.

              (v) Electronic bingo aids may be used to offer visual and audio feedback for all players including, but not limited to, easy to read bingo cards on screen, symbols representative of bingo card wins and bonus wins, and entertaining displays and sounds designed to easily identify accurately achieved preannounced configuration matches.

              (vi) A veteran's organization may enter into any contract with any vendor for the vendor to operate electronic bingo aids, concessions, security, or any other service on behalf of the veterans' organization.

              (vii) A veteran's organization may not hold more than one American Heroes Bingo license. Multiple veteran's organizations may operate or cause the operation of American Heroes Bingo in a building, provided that there is a single specified license holder per building. This applies to all buildings regardless of ownership, primary use, or original use.

 

SECTION 3.  Section 12-21-4030(B) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (B)(1) A holder of a Class AA license shall impose an entrance fee of eighteen dollars;

       (2) A holder of a Class B license shall impose an entrance fee of five dollars;

       (3) A holder of a Class D or Class E license may impose a five-dollar entrance fee; and

       (4) A holder of a Class F license may impose a three-dollar entrance fee.; and

       (5) A holder of a Class G license may impose an entrance fee of five dollars.

SECTION 4.  Section 12-21-4070 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    Section 12-21-4070.   No license, as provided by this article, may be issued to an organization, promoter, vendor, veteran's organization, or individual that has not been domiciled in this State for at least threetwo years immediately preceding the license application. In the case of the organization or vendor, the organization or vendor must also have been active in this State for at least two years.

 

SECTION 5.  Section 12-21-4190 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    Section 12-21-4190.   (A) The department shall charge and retain ten cents for each dollar of face value for each bingo card sold for AA, B, D, and E licenses. The department shall charge and retain five cents for each dollar of face value for each bingo card sold for an F license. The department shall charge and retain four cents for each dollar of face value for each bingo card sold for a C license.

    (B) The revenue retained must be distributed as follows:

       (1) twenty-eight percent of the revenue must be distributed to the sponsoring charity for which the bingo cards were purchased. The department shall make the distribution to the sponsoring charity by the last day of the next month following the month the revenue was collected. Distributions pursuant to this subsection must be reduced by any delinquent debts as defined in the Setoff Debt Collection Act;

       (2) seventy-two percent pursuant to Section 12-21-4200.

    (C) The provisions of subsection (B) do not apply to holders of Class F licenses. The entire amount of revenue remitted pursuant to Section 12-21-4190 by Class F licensees shall be distributed pursuant to Section 12-21-4200.

    (D)(1) The provisions of subsections (A) and (B) do not apply to holders of a Class G license. An amount of fifteen percent of the net hold for a month derived from American Heroes Bingo of each veteran's organization must be remitted to the Veterans' Trust Fund. A total amount of ten percent of the net hold for a month derived from American Heroes Bingo of each veteran's organization must be split and remitted equally to the South Carolina state headquarters of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Disabled American Veterans. Other chartered Veterans Service Organizations with membership in excess of four thousand also may submit a claim to the proceeds derived from American Heroes Bingo. Such payments are due on or before the twentieth day of the following month.

       (2) All revenues received and deposited into the Veterans' Trust Fund from American Heroes Bingo are subject to an annual budget process. A budget outlining all anticipated expenditures of such funds must be prepared and submitted to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for approval. Disbursement of funds derived from American Heroes Bingo may not be made without the prior approval of the Secretary.

SECTION 6.  Section 33-57-100 (A) and (D) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (A) A lottery or raffle of any type whatsoever is unlawful unless it is authorized by the following:

       (1) Chapter 150, Title 59, the Education Lottery;

       (2) Article 24, Chapter 21, Title 12, Charitable Bingo;  or

       (3) Chapter 57, Title 33, Nonprofit Raffles for Charitable Purposes.; or

       (4) Article 24, Chapter 21, Title 12, American Heroes Bingo.

 

    (D) Except for raffles conducted by the South Carolina Lottery Commission pursuant to Chapter 150, Title 59 or Charitable Bingo authorized by Article 24, Chapter 21, Title 12, or American Heroes Bingo authorized by Article 24, Chapter 21, Title 12, the provisions of this chapter provide the sole means by which activities associated with conducting raffles are authorized. The provisions of this chapter must be narrowly construed to ensure that tax-exempt entities conducting a nonprofit raffle pursuant to this chapter are in strict compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

 

SECTION 7.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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