H. B. 4563
(By Delegates Givens, Manuel and R. Thompson)
(Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary)
[February 20, 2002]
A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article twenty, chapter
forty-seven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact
section four, article twenty-one of said chapter, all relating
to the licensing of charitable bingo or charitable raffle
activities by charitable or public organizations.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article twenty, chapter forty-seven of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section four, article
twenty-one of said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 20. CHARITABLE BINGO.
§47-20-3. Who may hold bingo games; application for license; licenses not transferable.
Any charitable or public service organization which has been
in existence in this state two years prior to filing an application
for a bingo license issued pursuant to section four or five of this
article may hold bingo occasions in accordance with the provisions
of this article during the time it holds a valid license:
Provided,
That if the applicant for a bingo license under section four or
five of this article is a charitable or public service organization
that is duly certified to be a branch, chapter or lodge of a
national association or organization in good standing, and if said
national association or organization has other branches, chapters
or lodges which have been in existence in this state for a period
of at least twenty-five (25) years, then the commissioner may waive
the requirement that the duly certified local branch, chapter or
lodge must be in existence for at least two years before it may
hold a bingo license, for good cause shown.
Application for a bingo license shall be made to the tax
commissioner and shall be on a form which shall be supplied by him
or her. The application shall contain the information required by
section seven of this article and any other information which the
commissioner considers necessary. An application shall be filed
not less than sixty days before the date when the applicant intends
to hold its first bingo occasion. No bingo occasion may be held until an application filed in accordance with this article has been
approved by the tax commissioner, and the bingo license has been
received: Provided, That under no circumstances may a licensee
organization conduct a bingo occasion before the sixty day filing
period between the filing of the application and date of the first
bingo occasion has elapsed: Provided, however, That the date the
application is received by the tax commissioner shall begin the
sixty day filing period. The tax commissioner shall send the
applicant its license within five days after approval of the bingo
application. If the filing period has elapsed, and the application
has not been denied by the tax commissioner, and the license has
not been received by the applicant, the applicant may consider the
application approved and begin to hold bingo occasions. The tax
commissioner shall send a bingo license to the applicant within
five days after the expiration of the filing period if the
application has not been otherwise denied.
No bingo license issued pursuant to this article may be
transferred.
ARTICLE 21. CHARITABLE RAFFLES.
§47-21-4. Who may hold raffles; application for license;
licenses not transferable.
(a) Except as provided in section three of this article, only
persons, as defined in section two of this article, who are residents of this state and who are active members of any
charitable or public service organization which has been in
existence in this state for at least two years prior to filing an
application for a raffle license issued pursuant to section five or
six of this article may hold raffle occasions in accordance with
the provisions of this article during the time it holds a valid
license: Provided, That if the applicants for a raffle license
under section five or six of this article are members of a
charitable or public service organization that is duly certified to
be a branch, chapter or lodge of a national association or
organization in good standing, and if said national association or
organization has other branches, chapters or lodges which have been
in existence in this state for a period of at least twenty-five
(25) years, then the commissioner may waive the requirement that
the duly certified local branch, chapter or lodge must be in
existence in this state for at least two years prior before it may
apply for or hold a raffle license, for good cause shown.
(b) Application for a raffle license shall be made to the tax
commissioner and shall be on a form supplied by him or her. The
application shall contain the information required by section eight
of this article and any other information which the commissioner
considers necessary. No raffle may be held and no tickets may be
sold pursuant to this article until the raffle application has been approved by the tax commissioner and the license has been received
by the applicant: Provided, That no raffle occasion may be held
and no raffle tickets may be sold until a sixty day filing period,
which is that time period between the receipt of that application
by the tax commissioner and the first raffle occasion, has expired:
Provided, however, That the tax commissioner shall send the
applicant its license within five days after the application is
approved. If the sixty day filing period has expired and the
application has not been denied and the raffle license has not been
received by the applicant, the applicant may consider the
application approved and begin to sell tickets for the raffle or
hold the raffle occasion. The tax commissioner shall send the
applicant its license within five days after the expiration of the
filing period if the application has not been otherwise denied.
(c) For purposes of this article, any application for an
annual license or a limited occasion license received prior to the
effective date of this article is considered filed on the effective
date.
(d) No raffle license issued pursuant to this article may be
transferred.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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