16 Tex. Admin. Code § 402.200 - General Restrictions on the Conduct of Bingo
(a) A bingo occasion that is fairly conducted
by a licensed authorized organization is one that is impartial, honest, and
free from prejudice or favoritism. It is also conducted competitively, free of
corrupt and criminal influences, and follows applicable provisions of the Bingo
Enabling Act and Charitable Bingo Administrative Rules.
(b) Inspection and use of equipment.
(1) All bingo equipment is subject to
inspection at any time by any representative of the Commission. No person may
tamper with or modify or allow others to tamper with or modify any bingo
equipment in any manner which would affect the randomness of numbers chosen or
which changes the numbers or symbols appearing on the face of a bingo card. A
licensed authorized organization has a continuing responsibility to ensure that
all bingo equipment used by it is in proper working condition.
(2) A registered bingo worker must inspect
the bingo balls prior to the first game of each bingo occasion, making sure all
of the balls are present and not damaged or otherwise compromised.
(3) Bingo balls that are missing, damaged, or
otherwise compromised shall be replaced in complete sets or individually if the
bingo balls are of the same type and design.
(4) A registered bingo worker must inspect
the bingo console and flashboard to ensure proper working order prior to the
first game of each bingo occasion.
(5) The organization must establish and
adhere to, and make available to the players upon request, a written procedure
that addresses problems during a bingo occasion concerning:
(A) bingo equipment malfunctions;
and
(B) improper bingo ball calls
or placements.
(c) Location of bingo occasion. A bingo
occasion may be conducted only on premises which are:
(1) owned by a licensed authorized
organization;
(2) owned by a
governmental agency when there is no charge to the licensed authorized
organization for use of the premises;
(3) owned or leased by a licensed commercial
lessor; or
(4) leased or used by
the holder of a temporary license who does not hold a regular
license.
(d) All bingo
games must be conducted and prizes awarded on the days and within the times
specified on the license to conduct bingo. If a circumstance occurs that would
cause a regular bingo game to continue past the time indicated on the license,
the licensed authorized organization may complete the regular bingo game. A
written record detailing the circumstance that caused the bingo game to
continue past the time indicated on the license must be maintained by the
organization for forty-eight (48) months.
(e) Pull-tab bingo event tickets may not be
sold after the occurrence of the event used to determine the game's winner(s)
unless the organization has a policy and procedure in their house rules
addressing the sale and redemption of pull-tab bingo event tickets after the
event has taken place.
(f)
Merchandise prizes. Any merchandise or other non-cash prize, including bingo
equipment, awarded as a bingo prize shall be valued at its current retail
price. However, a non-cash prize awarded as a bingo prize may be valued at the
price actually paid for that prize provided that the licensed authorized
organization maintains a receipt or other documentation evidencing the actual
price paid.
(g) "Cash bingo prize"
includes cash, coins, checks, money orders, or any other financial instrument
that is convertible to cash.
(h)
Donated bingo prizes. A licensed authorized organization may accept or award
donated bingo prizes. A donated bingo prize shall be valued at its current
retail price.
(i) The licensed
authorized organization is responsible for ensuring the following minimum
requirements are met to conduct a bingo occasion in a manner that is fair.
(1) The licensed authorized organization must
make the following information available to players prior to the selling of a
pull-tab bingo event ticket game:
(A) how the
game will be played;
(B) the prize
to be awarded if not United States currency; and
(C) how the winner(s) will be
determined.
(2) Each
licensed authorized organization shall conspicuously display during all bingo
occasions a sign indicating the name(s) of the operator(s) authorized by the
licensed authorized organization to be in charge of the occasion.
(A) The letters on the sign shall be no less
than one inch tall.
(B) The sign
shall inform the players that they should direct any questions or complaints
regarding the conduct of the bingo occasion to an operator listed on the
sign.
(C) The sign should further
state that if the player is not satisfied with the response given by the
operator that the player has the right to contact the Commission and file a
formal written complaint.
(3) Prior to the start of a bingo occasion,
the licensed authorized organization shall make a written game schedule
available to all patrons. The game schedule must contain the following
information:
(A) all regularly scheduled
games to be played;
(B) the order
in which the games will be played;
(C) the patterns needed to win;
(D) the prize(s) to be paid for each game,
including the value of any non-cash bingo prizes as set in subsections (f) and
(g) of this section;
(E) whether
the prize payout is based on sales or attendance;
(F) the entrance fee and the number of cards
associated with the entrance fee, if any; and
(G) the price of each type of bingo card
offered for sale.
(4) The
licensed authorized organization may amend the game schedule during the bingo
occasion to correctly reflect any changes to game play during that occasion
provided that the amendments are announced to the patrons and documented, in
writing, on the game schedule. If not otherwise prohibited by law, the licensed
authorized organization may conduct a bingo game that was not originally listed
on the game schedule if the game and the prize(s) to be awarded for that game
are announced to the patrons prior to the start of the game and documented, in
writing, on the game schedule. Upon completion of the bingo occasion, the final
game schedule must properly account for all games played during that occasion
and the prizes awarded for those games.
(j) Reservation of bingo cards. No licensed
authorized organization may reserve, or allow to be reserved, any bingo card or
cards for use by a bingo player.
(k) Bingo worker requirements.
(1) Bingo staff and employees may not play
bingo during an occasion in which the bingo staff or employees are conducting
or assisting in the conduct of the bingo occasion.
(2) A bingo worker shall not:
(A) communicate verbally, or in any other
manner, to the caller the number(s) or symbol(s) needed by any player to win a
bingo game;
(B) require anything of
value from players, other than payment, for bingo cards, electronic card
minding devices, pull-tab bingo tickets, and supplies; or
(C) deduct any cash or portion of a winning
prize other than the prize fee without the player's
permission.
(l)
Caller requirements. The caller shall:
(1) be
located so that one or more players can:
(A)
observe the drawing of the ball from the bingo receptacle; and
(B) gain the attention of the caller when the
players bingo;
(2) be the
only person to handle the bingo balls during each bingo game;
(3) call all numbers and make all
announcements in a manner clear and audible to all of the playing areas of the
bingo premises;
(4) announce:
(A) prior to the start of the regular bingo
game, the pattern needed to win and the prize. If the prize amount is based on
sales or attendance, the prize amount must be announced prior to the end of the
game;
(B) that the game, or a
specific part of a multiple-part game, is closed after asking at least two (2)
times whether there are any other bingos and pausing to permit additional
winners to identify themselves;
(C)
whether the bingo is valid and if not, that there is no valid bingo and the
game shall resume. The caller shall repeat the last number called before
calling any more numbers; and
(D)
the number of winners for the game.
(5) return the bingo balls to the bingo
receptacle only upon the conclusion of the game; and
(6) not use cell phones, personal digital
assistants (PDAs), computers, or other personal electronic devices to
communicate any information that could affect the outcome of the bingo game
with anyone during the bingo occasion.
(m) Verification.
(1) Winning cards. The numbers appearing on
the winning card must be verified at the time the winner is determined and
prior to prize(s) being awarded in order to ensure that the numbers on the card
in fact have been drawn from the receptacle.
(A) This verification shall be done either in
the immediate presence of one or more players at a table or location other than
the winner's, or displayed on a TV monitor visible by all of the players or by
an electronic verifier system visible by all the players.
(B) After the caller closes the game, a
winning disposable paper card or an electronic representation of the card for
each game shall also be posted on the licensed premises where it may be viewed
in detail by the players until at least 30 minutes after the completion of the
last bingo game of that organization's occasion.
(2) Numbers drawn. Any player may request a
verification of the numbers drawn at the time a winner is determined and a
verification of the balls remaining in the receptacle and not drawn.
(A) Verification shall take place in the
immediate presence of the operator, one or more players other than the winner,
and player requesting the verification.
(B) Availability of this additional
verification, done as a request from players, shall be made known either
verbally prior to the bingo occasion, printed on the playing schedule, or
included with the bingo house rules.
(n) Each licensed authorized organization
must establish and adhere to written procedures that address disputes. Those
procedures shall be made available to the players upon request.
(o) The total aggregate amount of prizes
awarded for regular bingo games during a single bingo occasion may not exceed
$5,000. This subsection does not apply to:
(1)
a pull-tab bingo game; or
(2) a
prize of $50 or less that is actually awarded in an individual game of regular
bingo.
(p) For purposes
of §
2001.419 of the
Occupations Code, a bingo occasion will be considered to have occurred on the
date on which the occasion began.
(q) A licensed authorized organization may
not accept credit cards or any other type of credit payments for the payment of
bingo products, regardless of how the transaction is
structured.
Notes
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