N.Y. Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law § 1315: Required capital investment

§ 1315. Required capital investment. 1. The board shall establish the

minimum capital investment for a gaming facility by zone and region.

Such investment shall include, but not be limited to, a casino area, at

least one hotel and other amenities; and provided further, that the

board shall determine whether it will include the purchase or lease

price of the land where the gaming facility will be located or any

infrastructure designed to support the site including, but not limited

to, drainage, utility support, roadways, interchanges, fill and soil or

groundwater or surface water contamination issues. The board may

consider private capital investment made previous to the effective date

of this section, but may, in its discretion, discount a percentage of

the investment made. Upon award of a gaming license by the commission,

the applicant shall be required to deposit ten percent of the total

investment proposed in the application into an interest-bearing account.

Monies received from the applicant shall be held in escrow until the

final stage of construction, as detailed in the timeline of construction

submitted with the licensee's application and approved by the

commission, at which time the deposit plus interest earned shall be

returned to the applicant to be applied for the final stage. Should the

applicant be unable to complete the gaming facility, the deposit shall

be forfeited to the state. In place of a cash deposit, the commission

may allow for an applicant to secure a deposit bond insuring that ten

percent of the proposed capital investment shall be forfeited to the

state if the applicant is unable to complete the gaming facility.

2. Each applicant shall submit its proposed capital investment with

its application to the board which shall include stages of construction

of the gaming facility and the deadline by which the stages and overall

construction and any infrastructure improvements will be completed. In

awarding a license, the commission shall determine at what stage of

construction a licensee shall be approved to open for gaming; provided,

however, that a licensee shall not be approved to open for gaming until

the commission has determined that at least the gaming area and other

ancillary entertainment services and non-gaming amenities, as required

by the board, have been built and are of a superior quality as set forth

in the conditions of licensure. The commission shall not approve a

gaming facility to open before the completion of the permanent casino

area.

3. A licensee who fails to begin gaming operations within twenty-four

months following license award shall be subject to suspension or

revocation of the gaming license by the commission and may, after being

found by the commission after notice and opportunity for a hearing to

have acted in bad faith in its application, be assessed a fine of up to

fifty million dollars.

4. The board shall determine a licensing fee to be paid by a licensee

within thirty days after the award of the license which shall be

deposited into the commercial gaming revenue fund. The license shall set

forth the conditions to be satisfied by the licensee before the gaming

facility shall be opened to the public. The commission shall set any

renewal fee for such license based on the cost of fees associated with

the evaluation of a licensee under this article which shall be deposited

into the commercial gaming fund. Such renewal fee shall be exclusive of

any subsequent licensing fees under this section.

5. The commission shall determine the sources and total amount of an

applicant's proposed capitalization to develop, construct, maintain and

operate a proposed gaming facility under this article. Upon award of a

gaming license, the commission shall continue to assess the

capitalization of a licensee for the duration of construction of the

proposed gaming facility and the term of the license.