§707. Authorization to license certain organizations; exemption; requirement for state license
A. The office may, consistent with the provisions of this Chapter, license charitable organizations, as defined in R.S. 4:703(1), to hold and operate the following specific games of chance:
(1) The game of chance commonly known as raffle or raffles played by drawing for prizes or the allotment of prizes by chance, by the selling of shares, tickets, or rights to participate in such game or games, and by conducting the game or games accordingly.
(2) The game of chance commonly known as bingo or keno played for prizes with cards bearing numbers or other designations, five or more in one line, the holder covering numbers, as objects, similarly numbered, are drawn from a receptacle, and the game being won by the person who first covers a previously designated arrangement of numbers on such a card.
(3) The game of chance commonly known as pull-tabs played for prizes with cards or tickets and as defined in R.S. 4:725 or played as electronic pull-tabs as provided in R.S. 4:733.
(4) Electronic video bingo as provided for in R.S. 4:724 and as defined by rules of the office.
(5) Fund-raising events generally known as "Las Vegas Nights" or "Casino Nights" as provided for in R.S. 4:729 and as defined by rules of the office.
B. In addition to the licensing required in Subsection A of this Section, the governing authority of any municipality or parish may, consistent with the provisions of this Chapter, license charitable organizations as defined in R.S. 4:703(1) to hold and operate the following specific games of chance:
(1) The game of chance commonly known as raffle or raffles played by drawing for prizes or the allotment of prizes by chance, by the selling of shares, tickets, or rights to participate in such game or games, and by conducting the game or games accordingly.
(2) The game of chance commonly known as bingo or keno played for prizes with cards bearing numbers or other designations, five or more in one line, the holder covering numbers, as objects, similarly numbered, are drawn from a receptacle, and the game being won by the person who first covers a previously designated arrangement of numbers on such a card.
(3) The game of chance commonly known as pull-tabs played for prizes with cards or tickets, as defined in R.S. 4:725, or played as electronic pull-tabs as provided in R.S. 4:733.
(4) Electronic video bingo as provided for in R.S. 4:724 and as defined by rules of the office.
(5) Fund-raising events generally known as "Las Vegas Nights" or "Casino Nights" as provided for in R.S. 4:729 as defined by rules of the office.
C. Any such organization so licensed may sell shares, tickets, or rights to participate in such games and may conduct the games accordingly when the entire net proceeds of such games of chance are to be devoted to educational, charitable, patriotic, religious, or public spirited uses, and when so licensed, may hold, operate, and conduct such games of chance exclusively by its members pursuant to this Chapter, except to the extent that the services of members of other bona fide licensed organizations as enumerated in this Section are volunteered by their organization for the sole purpose of selling shares, tickets, or rights in such games. Any such organization so licensed may sell shares, tickets, or rights to participate in such game or games of chance pursuant to rules and regulations for the supervision and conduct thereof, as prescribed by the office and, when applicable, by the governing authority of the municipality or parish not inconsistent with the provisions of this Chapter. Further, any person or persons may participate in and play such games of chance conducted under any license.
D.(1) In addition to the authority granted in Subsection A of this Section, the office may license the following organizations, as defined in this Section, to hold and operate the specific kind of game or games of chance enumerated in Subsection A of this Section without the requirement that any such organization qualify with the Internal Revenue Service for an exemption from federal income tax as specified by R.S. 4:703(1): Mardi Gras carnival organizations, civic or service associations, qualified associations of licensed charitable organizations, volunteer fire companies, booster clubs, parent-teacher associations, private nonprofit elementary or secondary schools, public elementary or secondary schools, and public institutions of higher education.
(2) In addition to the authority granted in Subsection B of this Section, the governing authority of any parish or municipality may license the following organizations, as defined in this Section, to hold and operate the specific kind of game or games of chance enumerated in Subsection B of this Section without the requirement that any such organization qualify with the Internal Revenue Service for an exemption from federal income tax as specified by R.S. 4:703(1): Mardi Gras carnival organizations, civic or service associations, qualified associations of licensed charitable organizations, volunteer fire companies, booster clubs, parent-teacher associations, private nonprofit elementary or secondary schools, public elementary or secondary schools, and public institutions of higher education.
E. In addition to the provisions of R.S. 4:703, the following definitions shall apply for the purposes of this Section:
(1) "Booster club" shall mean an organization which promotes and supports the activities, functions, or programs of a public or a private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in this state and which has been designated by the school board of the parish or city in which such school is located to collect funds in the name of that school.
(2) "Civic or service association" shall mean an organization domiciled in this state which is operated for the purpose of promoting the social welfare or providing service to the community and which has derived five thousand dollars or less in gross receipts from its charitable games of chance during the prior calendar year.
(3) "Coastal conservation association" shall mean a member-based organization domiciled in this state operated for the purpose of promoting marine wildlife and habitat conservation and whose mission is to promote and enhance the present and future availability of coastal resources for the benefit and enjoyment of the general public.
(4) "Mardi Gras carnival organization" shall mean an organization domiciled in this state which presents pre-Lenten festivities, including street parades, and which has received a permit to parade from a municipal or parish governing authority.
(5) "Parent-teacher association" shall mean an organization which is comprised of teachers and parents of children enrolled in a public or a private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in this state and which has been designated by the school board of the parish or city in which such school is located to collect funds in the name of that school.
(6) "Private nonprofit elementary or secondary school" includes every nonprofit private elementary or secondary school within the state of Louisiana.
(7) "Public elementary or secondary school" includes every public elementary or secondary school within the state of Louisiana.
(8) "Public institution of higher education" includes every in-state public graduate and undergraduate institution, public junior and community college, public technical institute, and each separate school or department of the institution, college, or institute when the entire net proceeds are devoted to support the institution.
(9) "Volunteer fire company" shall mean an organization which has been engaged by the governing authority of a parish, municipality, or fire protection district to provide fire protection services to the area of this state under its jurisdiction and which is comprised predominantly of individuals who provide such services voluntarily and without compensation.
F.(1)(a) A bona fide senior citizen recreation club, upon application to the municipality or parish, shall be exempt from the licensing and reporting procedure enumerated in R.S. 4:708 through 716 in a municipality or parish whose governing authority has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits as provided in R.S. 4:706.
(b) A "senior citizen recreation club" for the purpose of this Chapter shall be defined as an organization which is sanctioned by the local council on aging and composed of a group of persons sixty years of age or older whose only function is to provide amusement and diversion for its members.
(2)(a) Any club, organization, group, or association which has a membership comprised exclusively of children enrolled in a public or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in this state and which is approved to conduct activities in such school by the principal of such school in accordance with school board policy shall be exempt from the licensing and reporting procedures enumerated in R.S. 4:708 through 716 in a municipality or parish whose governing authority has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits as provided in R.S. 4:706. Such club, organization, group, or association shall be exempted from licensing and reporting procedures only for the conducting of raffles as a means of fundraising.
(b) A private nonprofit elementary or secondary school and any public elementary or secondary school in this state shall be exempt from the licensing and reporting procedures enumerated in R.S. 4:708 through 716 in any municipality or parish whose governing authority has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits as provided in R.S. 4:706. Such private nonprofit school or public school shall be exempted from licensing or reporting procedures only for the conducting of raffles as a means of fundraising.
(3)(a) A charitable organization, upon application to the municipality or parish, shall be exempt from the licensing and reporting requirements provided in R.S. 4:708 through 716 for the purpose of conducting a raffle as defined in Paragraph (A)(1) of this Section in any municipality or parish the governing authority of which has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits as provided in R.S. 4:706, provided the municipality or parish finds, upon such application, that the charitable organization is conducting such raffle for the purpose of providing support to any elementary or secondary school in the municipality or parish or for other purposes of community support.
(b) A public institution of higher education licensed pursuant to this Section shall be exempt from the licensing and reporting requirements provided in R.S. 4:708 through 716 in any municipality or parish the governing authority of which has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits and may sell shares, tickets, or rights to participate in the authorized game known as raffle and may conduct the game of raffle when the entire net proceeds of the games of chance are devoted to supporting the institution.
(4) Any bona fide conservation organization, which is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) corporation, dedicated principally to the conservation of a specific species, genus, or family of game animal or game fish, including but not limited to the conservation of ducks, waterfowl generally, quail, and turkeys or saltwater and freshwater fish such as speckled trout, redfish, flounder, large mouth bass, and crappie, which is otherwise permitted by law to conduct charitable gaming shall be exempted from the licensing and reporting procedures enumerated in R.S. 4:708 through 716 solely for conducting raffles as a means of fundraising in a municipality or parish whose governing authority has decided to permit raffles, bingo, and keno within its limits as provided in R.S. 4:706.
G. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter to the contrary, no municipal or parish governing authority shall license any organization as authorized in this Chapter unless that organization has first obtained a charitable gaming license from the office, as further provided in R.S. 4:705.
H.(1) No person or organization shall hold, operate, or conduct any game of chance enumerated in Subsection A of this Section without obtaining a charitable gaming license or a special charitable gaming license from the office, as further provided in R.S. 4:718.
(2) Organizations closely connected to one another shall not hold, operate, or conduct any game of chance enumerated in Subsection A of this Section under a single state charitable gaming license. Each organization shall be required to obtain a separate license from the office in order to conduct such games. Any otherwise eligible organization shall be deemed to be closely connected when any one of the following conditions are met:
(a) Membership in one organization automatically qualifies an individual as a member of another organization.
(b) Membership in one organization is dependent upon membership in another organization, including social membership.
(c) The existence of an organization is dependent upon the existence of another organization.
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, a chartered auxiliary group associated with a nonprofit, licensed organization shall not be required to obtain a separate license in order to assist in the holding, operating, or conducting of any game of chance being operated by the parent organization. The parent organization shall notify the office of charitable gaming annually of the names of members who will assist in the gaming operations. Nothing in this Paragraph shall prohibit a qualified chartered auxiliary group from receiving its own gaming license.
(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, a coastal conservation association as defined in Subsection E of this Section shall be exempt from the provisions of Paragraph (1) of this Subsection strictly for the purposes of conducting the game of chance commonly known as raffle or raffles as defined in Paragraph (A)(1) of this Section.
I. Nothing in this Chapter shall prohibit a charitable organization from contributing to a qualified association of licensed charitable organizations as defined by R.S. 4:703(10). Such an association shall not be subject to audit by the office except as otherwise provided by law.
J. The governing authority of a municipality or parish may, by ordinance, transfer regulatory authority over charitable gaming in that municipality or parish to the office of charitable gaming.
Acts 1999, No. 568, §3, eff. June 30, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 106, §1, eff. July 1, 2001; Acts 2003, No. 602, §1, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2003, No. 871, §1, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2017, No. 214, §1; Acts 2018, No. 610, §1; Acts 2022, No. 387, §1; Acts 2022, No. 523, §1; Acts 2023, No. 19, §1.