N.Y. Executive Law § 435: Powers and duties of the commission

§ 435. Powers and duties of the commission. 1. The commission shall

have the power and it shall be its duty to:

(a) Supervise the administration of the bingo licensing law and adopt,

amend and repeal rules and regulations governing the issuance and

amendment of licenses thereunder and the conducting of games under such

licenses, which rules and regulations shall have the force and effect of

law and shall be binding upon all municipalities issuing licenses, and

upon licensees thereunder and licensees of the commission, to the end

that such licenses shall be issued to qualified licensees only and that

said games shall be fairly and properly conducted for the purposes and

in the manner in the said bingo licensing law prescribed and to prevent

the games thereby authorized to be conducted from being conducted for

commercial purposes or purposes other than those therein authorized,

participated in by criminal or other undesirable elements and the funds

derived from the games being diverted from the purposes authorized, and,

to provide uniformity in the administration of said law throughout the

state, the commission shall prescribe forms of application for licenses,

licenses, amendment of licenses, reports of the conduct of games and

other matters incident to the administration of such law;

(b) Conduct, anywhere within the state, investigations of the

administration, enforcement and potential or actual violations of the

bingo licensing law and of the rules and regulations of the commission;

(c) Review all determinations and actions of the municipal governing

body in issuing an initial license, and it may review the issuance of

subsequent licenses and, after hearing, revoke those licenses which do

not in all respects meet the requirements of this article, article

fourteen-h of the general municipal law and the rules and regulations of

the commission;

(d) Suspend or revoke a license, after hearing, for any violation of

the provisions of this article, article fourteen-h of the general

municipal law or the rules and regulations of the commission;

(e) Hear appeals from the determinations and action of the municipal

governing body in connection with the refusing to issue licenses, the

suspension and revocation of licenses and the imposition of fines in the

manner prescribed by law and the action and determination of the

commission upon any such appeal shall be binding upon the municipal

governing body and all parties thereto;

(f) Initiate prosecutions for violations of this article and of the

bingo licensing law;

(g) Carry on continuous study of the operation of the bingo licensing

law to ascertain from time to time defects therein jeopardizing or

threatening to jeopardize the purposes of this article, and to formulate

and recommend changes in such law and in other laws of the state which

the commission may determine to be necessary for the realization of such

purposes, and to the same end to make a continuous study of the

operation and administration of similar laws which may be in effect in

other states of the United States.

(h) Supervise the disposition of all funds derived from the conduct of

bingo by authorized organizations not currently licensed to conduct such

games;

(i) Issue an identification number to an applicant authorized

organization if it shall determine that the applicant satisfies the

requirements of the bingo licensing law and the rules and regulations.

2. (a) The commission shall have the power to issue or, after hearing,

refuse to issue a license permitting a person, firm or corporation to

sell or distribute to any other person, firm or corporation engaged in

business as a wholesaler, jobber, distributor or retailer of all cards,

boards, sheets, pads and all other supplies, devices and equipment

designed for use in the play of bingo by an organization duly licensed

to conduct bingo games or to sell or distribute any such materials

directly to such an organization. For the purposes of this section the

words "sell or distribute" shall include, but shall not be limited to,

the following activities; offering for sale, receiving, handling,

maintaining, storing the same on behalf of such an organization,

distributing or providing the same to such an organization, and offering

for sale or lease bingo devices and equipment. Each such license shall

be valid for one year.

(b) No person, firm or corporation, other than an organization that is

or has been during the preceding twelve months duly licensed to conduct

bingo games, shall sell or distribute bingo supplies or equipment

without having first obtained a license therefor upon a written or

electronic application made, verified and filed with the commission in

the form prescribed by the rules and regulations of the commission. As a

part of its determination concerning the applicant's suitability for

licensing as a bingo supplier, the commission shall require the

applicant to furnish to such board two sets of fingerprints. Such

fingerprints shall be submitted to the division of criminal justice

services for a state criminal history record check, as defined in

subdivision one of section three thousand thirty-five of the education

law, and may be submitted to the federal bureau of investigation for a

national criminal history record check. In each such application for a

license under this section shall be stated the name and address of the

applicant; the names and addresses of its officers, directors,

shareholders or partners; the amount of gross receipts realized on the

sale or distribution of bingo supplies and equipment to duly licensed

organizations during the last preceding calendar or fiscal year, and

such other information as shall be prescribed by such rules and

regulations. The fee for such license shall be a sum equal to

twenty-five dollars plus an amount based upon the gross sales, if any,

of bingo equipment and supplies to authorized organizations by the

applicant during the preceding calendar year, or fiscal year if the

applicant maintains his or her accounts on a fiscal year basis, and

determined in accordance with the following schedule:

gross sales of $1,000 to $4,999................$10.00

gross sales of $5,000 to $19,999...............$50.00

gross sales of $20,000 to $49,999.............$200.00

gross sales of $50,000 to $100,000............$500.00

gross sales in excess of $100,000...........$1,000.00

(c) The following shall be ineligible for such a license:

(1) a person convicted of a crime if there is a direct relationship

between one or more of the previous criminal offenses and the integrity

and safety of bingo, considering the factors set forth in article

twenty-three-A of the correction law;

(2) a person who is or has been a professional gambler or gambling

promoter or who for other reasons is not of good moral character;

(3) a public officer or employee;

(4) an operator or proprietor of a commercial hall duly licensed under

the bingo licensing law;

(5) a firm or corporation in which a person defined in clause (1),

(2), (3) or (4) of this paragraph, or a person married or related in the

first degree to such a person, has greater than a ten percent

proprietary, equitable or credit interest or in which such a person is

active or employed.

(d) The control commission shall have power to examine or cause to be

examined the books and records of any applicant for a license, or any

licensee, under this section. Any information so received shall not be

disclosed except so far as may be necessary for the purpose of carrying

out the provisions of this article and article fourteen-h of the general

municipal law.

(e) Any solicitation of an organization licensed to conduct bingo

games, to purchase or induce the purchase of bingo supplies and

equipment, or any representation, statement or inquiry designed or

reasonably tending to influence such an organization to purchase the

same, other than by a person licensed or otherwise authorized pursuant

to this section shall constitute a violation of this section.

(f) Any person who willfully shall make any material false statement

in any application for a license authorized to be issued under this

article or who willfully shall violate any of the provisions of this

section or of any license issued hereunder shall be guilty of a

misdemeanor and, in addition to the penalties in such case made and

provided, shall forfeit any license issued to him or it under this

section and be ineligible to apply for a license under this section for

one year thereafter.

(g) At the end of the license period, a recapitulation shall be made

as between the licensee and the commission in respect of the gross sales

actually recorded during the license period and the fee paid therefor,

and any deficiency of fee thereby shown to be due shall be paid by the

licensee and any excess of fee thereby shown to have been paid shall be

credited to said licensee in such manner as the commission by the rules

and regulations shall prescribe.

3. The commission shall have the power to approve and establish a

standard set of bingo cards comprising a consecutively numbered series

and shall by its rules and regulations prescribe the manner in which

such cards are to be reproduced and distributed to licensed authorized

organizations. The sale or distribution to a licensed authorized

organization of any card or cards other than those contained in the

standard set of bingo cards shall constitute a violation of this

section. Licensed authorized organizations shall not be required to use

nor to maintain such cards seriatim excepting that the same may be

required in the conduct of limited period bingo games.