BILL NUMBER: SB 1369 AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 18, 2008 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 10, 2008 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 27, 2008 INTRODUCED BYSenatorCedilloSenators Cedillo and Battin ( Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Torrico ) ( Coauthors: Senators Cogdill, Denham, Ducheny, Florez, Harman, Maldonado, Padilla, Runner, and Wyland ) ( Coauthor: Assembly Member Lieu ) FEBRUARY 21, 2008An act to amend Section 49557.2 of the Education Code, relating to pupil nutrition.An act to add Section 19850.5 to the Business and Professions Code, and to amend Section 326.5 of, and to add Section 326.3 to, the Penal Code, relating to bingo. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1369, as amended, Cedillo.Pupil nutrition: free and reduced price meals: application.Remote caller bingo. Existing law permits cities, counties, and cities and counties to allow bingo games to be conducted by specified organizations for charitable purposes, subject to provisions of law which, if violated, constitute a crime. Existing law defines bingo for the purposes of these provisions as a game of chance in which prizes are awarded on the basis of designated numbers or symbols on a card that conform to numbers or symbols that are selected at random. Existing law prohibits the total value of prizes awarded for any bingo game from exceeding $250 in cash or kind, or both, for each separate game that is held. Existing law prohibits any person from receiving or paying a profit, wage, or salary from any bingo game, except that security personnel employed by the organization conducting the bingo game may be paid from bingo game revenues. A violation of this provision is a misdemeanor. This bill would also permit cities, counties, and cities and counties to allow bingo games to be conducted by school districts for charitable purposes. The bill would modify the definition of bingo to mean a game of chance in which prizes are awarded on the basis of designated numbers or symbols that are marked or covered by the player on a tangible card in the player's possession and that conform to numbers or symbols, selected at random and announced by a live caller. The bill would prohibit the use of electronics or video displays in connection with a bingo game, except as specified, and would also increase the allowable value of prizes for a bingo game to $500. By changing the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would also permit cities, counties, and cities and counties to allow remote caller bingo games, defined as bingo games in which the organization conducting the game uses audio or video technology to link electronically any of its in-state facilities for the purpose of the remote calling of a game from a single location to multiple locations owned, leased, or rented by that organization or by an affiliated entity. The bill would limit the operation of remote caller bingo games to organizations that have been incorporated or in existence for 3 years or more, and would allow the organization conducting the game to pay administrative, managerial, technical, financial, and security personnel reasonable fees for services rendered from bingo game revenues, with certain limitations. The bill would prohibit the value of prizes awarded during the conduct of any remote caller bingo game from exceeding 37% of the gross receipts for that game, and would require that all prize money exceeding state and federal exemption limits on prize money be subject to income tax reporting and withholding requirements under applicable state and federal laws and regulations. The bill would require remote caller bingo games to be played using traditional paper or other tangible bingo cards and daubers and would prohibit certain locations from participating in the games. The bill would provide for the regulation of remote caller bingo by the California Gambling Control Commission, as specified. The bill would make related changes. By changing the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.Existing law requires the governing board of a school district and the county superintendent of schools to make applications for free or reduced price meals available to pupils at all times during each regular schoolday. A school district and county superintendent of schools may incorporate information about the Medi-Cal and Healthy Families programs in the application. Parents may consent to allow the school district or county superintendent of schools to share information from the school lunch program application with the county agency administering the Medi-Cal program for use in making an accelerated Medi-Cal eligibility determination.This bill would prohibit a school district from sharing the information on the school lunch program application if the school district possesses data that indicates that the child already has an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case. The school would be required to notify the parent or guardian of the finding of the district that the child already has Medi-Cal and further, to notify him or her that if the child has not received a Medi-Cal Beneficiary Identification Card or does not know how to use their Medi-Cal services, he or she should call the county for assistance. If it is verified that the child does not have an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case, the school district would have the option of not processing the application for an accelerated Medi-Cal determination and forwarding it to the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and to the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program. The request for the consent of the parent or guardian to share the information on the school lunch program application would be required to include a notification that if the school district determines the child already has an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case, the information on the application will not be shared and the applicant will be told that they already have Medi-Cal or Healthy Families and what to do if they do not have a Medi-Cal or Healthy Families card or do not know how to get care.Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:noyes . State-mandated local program:noyes . THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the California Remote Caller Bingo Act. SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) Nonprofit organizations provide important and essential educational, philanthropic, and social services to the people of the State of California. (b) One of the great strengths of California is a vibrant nonprofit sector. (c) Nonprofit and philanthropic organizations touch the lives of every Californian through service and employment. (d) Many of these services would not be available if nonprofit organizations did not provide them. (e) There is a need to provide methods of fundraising to nonprofit organizations to enable them to provide these essential services. (f) Historically, many nonprofit organizations have used charitable bingo as one of their key fundraising strategies to promote the mission of the charity. (g) Legislation is needed to provide greater revenues for nonprofit organizations to enable them to fulfill their charitable purposes, and especially to meet their increasing social service obligations. (h) Legislation is also needed to clarify that existing law requires that all charitable bingo must be played using a tangible card and that the only permissible electronic devices to be used by charitable bingo players are card-minding devices, except that no card-minding devices may be used in connection with a remote caller bingo game. SEC. 3. Section 19850.5 is added to the Business and Professions Code , to read: 19850.5. Notwithstanding Section 19850 or any other provision of law, this chapter shall apply to the operation of remote caller bingo, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (u) of Section 326.3 of the Penal Code, to the extent expressly made applicable by Section 326.3 of the Penal Code. No requirement contained in this chapter shall apply to remote caller bingo unless expressly made applicable by Section 326.3 of the Penal Code. SEC. 4. Section 326.3 is added to the Penal Code , to read: 326.3. (a) Neither the prohibition on gambling in this chapter nor in Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 330) applies to any remote caller bingo game that is played or conducted in a city, county, or city and county pursuant to an ordinance enacted under Section 19 of Article IV of the California Constitution, if the ordinance allows a remote caller bingo game to be played or conducted only in accordance with the requirements of this section, including the following requirements: (1) The game may be conducted only by one of the following organizations: (A) An organization that is exempted from the payment of the bank and corporation tax by Section 23701a, 23701b, 23701d, 23701e, 23701f, 23701g, 23701k, 23701w, or 23701 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. (B) A mobilehome park association. (C) A senior citizens organization. (D) A school district. (2) The organization conducting the game shall have been incorporated or in existence for three years or more. (3) The organization conducting the game shall be licensed pursuant to subdivision (l) of Section 326.5. (4) The receipts of the game shall be used only for charitable purposes. The organization conducting the game shall determine the disbursement of the net receipts of the game. (b) It is a misdemeanor for any person to receive or pay a profit, wage, or salary from any remote caller bingo game, provided that administrative, managerial, technical, financial, and security personnel employed by the organization conducting the bingo game may be paid reasonable fees for services rendered from the revenues of bingo games, as provided in subdivision (j). (c) A violation of subdivision (b) shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000), which fine shall be deposited in the general fund of the city, county, or city and county that enacted the ordinance authorizing the remote caller bingo game. A violation of any provision of this section, other than subdivision (b), is a misdemeanor. (d) The city, county, or city and county that enacted the ordinance authorizing the remote caller bingo game, or the Attorney General, may bring an action to enjoin a violation of this section. (e) No minors shall be allowed to participate in any remote caller bingo game. (f) An organization authorized to conduct a remote caller bingo game pursuant to subdivision (a) shall conduct the game only on property that is owned or leased by the organization, or the use of which is donated to the organization, provided that the operation of bingo games may not be a primary purpose for which the organization is organized. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to require that the property that is owned or leased by, or the use of which is donated to, the organization be used or leased exclusively by, or donated exclusively to, that organization. (g) (1) All remote caller bingo games shall be open to the public, not just to the members of the authorized organization. (2) No more than 750 players may participate in a remote caller bingo game in a single venue. (3) If the Governor of California or the President of the United States declares a state of emergency in response to a natural disaster or other public catastrophe occurring in California, an organization authorized to conduct remote caller bingo games may, while that declaration is in effect, conduct those games pursuant to this section with more than 750 participants in a single venue if the net proceeds of the games, after deduction of prizes and overhead expenses, are donated to or expended exclusively for the relief of the victims of the disaster or catastrophe, and the organization gives the California Gambling Control Commission at least 10 days' written notice of the intent to conduct those games. (h) (1) A remote caller bingo game shall be operated and staffed only by members of the authorized organization that organized it. Those members shall not receive a profit, wage, or salary from any bingo game. Only the organization authorized to conduct a remote caller bingo game shall operate that game, or participate in the promotion, supervision, or any other phase of a remote caller bingo game. Subject to the provisions of subdivision (j), this subdivision shall not preclude the employment of administrative, managerial, technical, financial, or security personnel who are not members of the authorized organization at a location participating in the remote caller bingo game by the organization conducting the game. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, exclusive or other agreements between the authorized organization and other entities or persons to provide services in the administration, management, or conduct of the game shall not be considered a violation of the prohibition against holding a legally cognizable financial interest in the conduct of the remote caller bingo game by persons or entities other than the charitable organization, or other entity authorized to conduct the remote caller bingo games, provided that those persons or entities obtain the gambling licenses, the key employee licenses, or the work permits required by, and otherwise comply with, Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 19800) of Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code. (2) An organization that conducts a remote caller bingo game shall designate a person as having fiduciary responsibility for the game. That person shall obtain a key employee license in the same manner as provided pursuant to Section 19854 of the Business and Professions Code, shall meet the requirements of Section 19857 of the Business and Professions Code, and shall pay the fees required by Section 19867 of the Business and Professions Code. (i) No individual, corporation, partnership, or other legal entity, except the organization authorized to conduct or participate in a remote caller bingo game, shall hold a legally cognizable financial interest in the conduct of such a game. (j) An organization authorized to conduct a remote caller bingo game pursuant to this section shall not have overhead costs exceeding 20 percent of gross sales, except that the limitations of this section shall not apply to one-time, nonrecurring capital acquisitions. For purposes of this subdivision, "overhead costs" includes, but is not limited to, amounts paid for rent and equipment leasing and the reasonable fees authorized to be paid to administrative, managerial, technical, financial, and security personnel employed by the organization pursuant to subdivision (b). (k) No person shall be allowed to participate in a remote caller bingo game unless the person is physically present at the time and place where the remote caller bingo game is being conducted. A person shall be deemed to be physically present at the place where the remote caller bingo game is being conducted if he or she is present at any of the locations participating in the remote caller bingo game in accordance with this section. (l) An organization shall not cosponsor a remote caller bingo game with one or more other organizations unless all of the cosponsors are affiliated under the master charter or articles and bylaws of a single organization. (m) The value of prizes awarded during the conduct of any remote caller bingo game shall not exceed 37 percent of the gross receipts for that game. Every remote caller bingo game shall be played until a winner is declared. Progressive prizes are prohibited. The declared winner of a remote caller bingo game shall provide his or her identifying information and a mailing address to the onsite manager of the remote caller bingo game. Prizes shall be paid only by check; no cash prizes shall be paid. The organization conducting the remote caller bingo game may issue a check to the winner at the time of the game, or may send a check to the declared winner by United States Postal Service certified mail, return receipt requested. All prize money exceeding state and federal exemption limits on prize money shall be subject to income tax reporting and withholding requirements under applicable state and federal laws and regulations and those reports and withholding shall be forwarded, within 10 business days, to the appropriate state or federal agency on behalf of the winner. A report shall accompany the amount withheld identifying the person on whose behalf the money is being sent. (n) Any organization that conducts a remote caller bingo game shall register with the Bureau of Gambling Control. The department may require an eligible organization to pay an annual registration fee of up to one hundred dollars ($100). The annual registration fees shall be deposited by the department into the Gambling Control Fund. (o) The caller for the remote caller bingo game shall have a finding of suitability, as defined in Section 19805 of the Business and Professions Code. (p) (1) The Bureau of Gambling Control, by regulation or order, may require any person or entity set forth in subdivision (b), to apply for a finding of suitability, as defined in Section 19805 of the Business and Professions Code. (2) "Person or entity" means one who, directly or indirectly, manufactures, distributes, supplies, vends, leases, or otherwise provides, supplies, devices, or other equipment designed for use in the playing of bingo games by any nonprofit organization registered to conduct bingo games. (q) The site manager at individual remote caller bingo game locations shall apply for, obtain, and thereafter maintain a valid work permit, as defined in Section 19805 of the Business and Professions Code. (r) The administrative, managerial, technical, financial, and security personnel employed by an organization that conducts remote caller bingo games shall apply for, obtain, and thereafter maintain valid work permits, as defined in Section 19805 of the Business and Professions Code. (s) An organization that conducts remote caller bingo games shall retain records in connection with the remote caller bingo game for five years. (t) (1) All equipment used for remote caller bingo shall be approved in advance by the California Gambling Control Commission pursuant to subdivision (r) of Section 19841 of the Business and Professions Code. (2) The California Gambling Control Commission shall monitor operation of the transmission and other equipment used for remote caller bingo. (u) (1) As used in this section, "remote caller bingo game" means a game of bingo, as defined in subdivision (o) of Section 326.5, in which the numbers or symbols on randomly drawn plastic balls are announced by a natural person present at the site at which the live game is conducted, and the organization conducting the bingo game uses audio and video technology to link any of its in-state facilities for the purpose of transmitting the remote calling of a live bingo game from a single location to multiple locations owned, leased, or rented by that organization, or by an affiliated entity under the organization's master charter or articles and bylaws. The audio or video technology used to link the facilities may include cable, Internet, satellite, broadband, or telephone technology, or any other means of electronic transmission that ensures the secure, accurate, and simultaneous transmission of the announcement of numbers or symbols in the game from the location at which the game is called by a natural person to the remote location or locations at which players may participate in the game. The drawing of each ball bearing a number or symbol by the natural person calling the game shall be visible to all players as the ball is drawn, including through a simultaneous live video feed at remote locations at which players may participate in the game. (2) The caller in the live game must be licensed by the California Gambling Control Commission. A game may be called by a nonlicensed caller if the drawing of balls and calling of numbers or symbols by that person is observed and personally supervised by a licensed caller. (3) Remote caller bingo games shall be played using traditional paper or other tangible bingo cards and daubers, and shall not be played by using electronic devices. (v) A location shall not be eligible to participate in a remote caller bingo game if bingo games are conducted at that location in violation of Section 326.5, including, but not limited to, a location at which unlawful electronic devices are used. (w) (1) A vendor of, and any person or entity maintaining, the equipment used to operate and transmit a remote caller bingo game shall obtain a license from the California Gambling Control Commission. The vendor of the equipment shall have its books and records audited at least annually by an independent California certified public accountant and shall submit the results of that audit to the California Gambling Control Commission within 120 days after the close of the vendor's fiscal year. In addition, the California Gambling Control Commission may audit the books and records of the vendor at any time. (2) An organization that conducts remote caller bingo games shall provide copies of the records pertaining to those games to the California Gambling Control Commission within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter. In addition, those records shall be audited by an independent California certified public accountant at least annually and copies of the audit reports shall be provided to the California Gambling Control Commission within 150 days after the close of the organization's fiscal year. (3) The costs of the licensing and audits required by this section shall be borne by the person or entity required to be licensed or audited. (x) (1) The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if paragraph (1) or (3) of subdivision (u), or the application of either of those provisions, is held invalid, this entire section shall be invalid. SEC. 5. Section 326.5 of the Penal Code is amended to read: 326.5. (a) Neither the prohibition on gambling in this chapter nor in Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 330) applies to any bingo game that is conducted in a city, county, or city and county pursuant to an ordinance enacted under Section 19 of Article IV of the State Constitution, if the ordinance allows games to be conducted only in accordance with this section and only by organizations exempted from the payment of the bank and corporation tax by Sections 23701a, 23701b, 23701d, 23701e, 23701f, 23701g, 23701k, 23701w, and 23701 of the Revenue and Taxation Code and by mobilehome park associationsand, senior citizens organizations , and school districts ; and if the receipts of those games are used only for charitable purposes. (b) It is a misdemeanor for any person to receive or pay a profit, wage, or salary from any bingo game authorized by Section 19 of Article IV of the State Constitution. Security personnel employed by the organization conducting the bingo game may be paid from the revenues of bingo games, as provided in subdivisions (j) and (k). (c) A violation of subdivision (b) shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000), which fine is deposited in the general fund of the city, county, or city and county that enacted the ordinance authorizing the bingo game. A violation of any provision of this section, other than subdivision (b), is a misdemeanor. (d) The city, county, or city and county that enacted the ordinance authorizing the bingo game may bring an action to enjoin a violation of this section. (e) No minors shall be allowed to participate in any bingo game. (f) An organization authorized to conduct bingo games pursuant to subdivision (a) shall conduct a bingo game only on property owned or leased by it, or property whose use is donated to the organization, and which property is used by that organization for an office or for performance of the purposes for which the organization is organized. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to require that the property owned or leased by, or whose use is donated to, the organization be used or leased exclusively by, or donated exclusively to, that organization. (g) All bingo games shall be open to the public, not just to the members of the authorized organization. (h) A bingo game shall be operated and staffed only by members of the authorized organization that organized it. Those members shall not receive a profit, wage, or salary from any bingo game. Only the organization authorized to conduct a bingo game shall operate such a game, or participate in the promotion, supervision, or any other phase of a bingo game. This subdivision does not preclude the employment of security personnel who are not members of the authorized organization at a bingo game by the organization conducting the game. (i) No individual, corporation, partnership, or other legal entity, except the organization authorized to conduct a bingo game, shall hold a financial interest in the conduct of a bingo game. (j) With respect to organizations exempt from payment of the bank and corporation tax by Section 23701d of the Revenue and Taxation Code, all profits derived from a bingo game shall be kept in a special fund or account and shall not be commingled with any other fund or account. Those profits shall be used only for charitable purposes. (k) With respect to other organizations authorized to conduct bingo games pursuant to this section, all proceeds derived from a bingo game shall be kept in a special fund or account and shall not be commingled with any other fund or account. Proceeds are the receipts of bingo games conducted by organizations not within subdivision (j). Those proceeds shall be used only for charitable purposes, except as follows: (1) The proceeds may be used for prizes. (2) A portion of the proceeds, not to exceed 20 percent of the proceeds before the deduction for prizes, or two thousand dollars ($2,000) per month, whichever is less, may be used for the rental of property and for overhead, including the purchase of bingo equipment, administrative expenses, security equipment, and security personnel. (3) The proceeds may be used to pay license fees. (4) A city, county, or city and county that enacts an ordinance permitting bingo games may specify in the ordinance that if the monthly gross receipts from bingo games of an organization within this subdivision exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000), a minimum percentage of the proceeds shall be used only for charitable purposes not relating to the conducting of bingo games and that the balance shall be used for prizes, rental of property, overhead, administrative expenses, and payment of license fees. The amount of proceeds used for rental of property, overhead, and administrative expenses is subject to the limitations specified in paragraph (2). () (1) A city, county, or city and county may impose a license fee on each organization that it authorizes to conduct bingo games. The fee, whether for the initial license or renewal, shall not exceed fifty dollars ($50) annually, except as provided in paragraph (2). If an application for a license is denied, one-half of any license fee paid shall be refunded to the organization. (2) In lieu of the license fee permitted under paragraph (1), a city, county, or city and county may impose a license fee of fifty dollars ($50) paid upon application. If an application for a license is denied, one-half of the application fee shall be refunded to the organization. An additional fee for law enforcement and public safety costs incurred by the city, county, or city and county that are directly related to bingo activities may be imposed and shall be collected monthly by the city, county, or city and county issuing the license; however, the fee shall not exceed the actual costs incurred in providing the service. (m) No person shall be allowed to participate in a bingo game, unless the person is physically present at the time and place where the bingo game is being conducted. (n) The total value of prizes available to be awarded during the conduct of any bingo games shall not exceedtwo hundred fifty dollars ($250)five hundred dollars ($500) in cash or kind, or both, for each separate game which is held. (o) As used in this section, "bingo" means a game of chance in which prizes are awarded on the basis of designated numbers or symbols that are marked or covered by the player on a tangible card in the player's possession and that conform to numbers or symbols , selected at random and announced by a live caller . Notwithstanding Section 330c, as used in this section, the game of bingo includes tangible cards having numbers or symbols that are concealed and preprinted in a manner providing for distribution of prizes. Electronics or video displays shall not be used in connection with the game of bingo, except as provided in subdivision (p). The winning cards shall not be known prior to the game by any person participating in the playing or operation of the bingo game. All preprinted cards shall bear the legend, "for sale or use only in a bingo game authorized under California law and pursuant to local ordinance." Only a covered or marked tangible card possessed by a player and presented to an attendant may be used to claim a prize. It is the intention of the Legislature that bingo as defined in this subdivision applies exclusively to this section and shall not be applied in the construction or enforcement of any other provision of law. (p) (1) Players who are physically present at a bingo game, other than a remote caller bingo game, as defined in Section 326.3, may use card-minding devices, as described in this subdivision, to assist in monitoring the numbers or symbols announced by a live caller as those numbers or symbols are called in a live game. Card-minding devices may not be used in connection with any game where a bingo card may be sold or distributed after the start of the ball draw for that game. A card-minding device shall do all of the following: (A) Be capable of storing in the memory of the device bingo faces of tangible cards purchased by a player. (B) Provide a means for bingo players to input manually each individual number or symbol announced by a live caller. (C) Compare the numbers or symbols entered by the player to the bingo faces previously stored in the memory of the device. (D) Identify winning bingo patterns that exist on the stored bingo faces. (2) A card-minding device shall perform no functions involving the play of the game other than those described in paragraph (1). Card-minding devices shall not do any of the following: (A) Be capable of accepting or dispensing any coins, currency, or other representative of value or on which value has been encoded. (B) Be capable of monitoring any bingo card face other than the faces of the tangible bingo card or cards purchased by the player for that game. (C) Display or represent the game result through any means, including, but not limited to, video or mechanical reels or other slot machine or casino game themes, other than highlighting the winning numbers or symbols or giving an audio alert that the player's card has a prize-winning pattern. (D) Determine the outcome of any game or be physically or electronically connected to any component that determines the outcome of a game or to any other bingo equipment, including, but not limited to, the ball call station, or to any other card-minding device. No other player-operated or player-activated electronic or electromechanical device or equipment is permitted to be used in connection with a bingo game. (3) (A) Before being used in any bingo game, any card-minding device shall have been tested and certified as meeting the requirements of this subdivision by the California Gambling Control Commission or an independent testing laboratory approved by the California Gambling Control Commission. Any material change to the device, including any change to the software used by the device, shall require a new certification. (B) No person or entity shall supply or service any card-minding device unless that person or entity has applied for and received from the California Gambling Control Commission a license or other determination of suitability. That license or determination shall be issued pursuant to the same license or suitability standards as are applicable to a supplier of equipment for controlled games under the Gambling Control Act and any regulations promulgated thereunder. (4) The costs of any testing, certification, license, or determination required by this subdivision shall be borne by the person or entity seeking it. (5) The California Gambling Control Commission and the Department of Justice shall have the right to inspect all card-minding devices at any time without notice. The Department of Justice and the California Gambling Control Commission may immediately stop the use of or impound any device that has not been certified or has been materially changed following certification. (6) The California Gambling Control Commission shall issue regulations to implement the requirements of this subdivision and may issue regulations regarding the means by which the operator of a bingo game, as required by applicable law, may offer assistance to a player with disabilities in order to enable that player to participate in a bingo game, provided that the means of providing that assistance shall not be through any electronic, electromechanical, or other device or equipment that accepts the insertion of any coin, currency, token, credit card, or other means of transmitting value, and does not constitute or resemble and is not itself or a part of a system that constitutes or resembles a slot machine, video lottery terminal, or any gambling device prohibited in Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 330). SEC. 6. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.SECTION 1.Section 49557.2 of the Education Code is amended to read: 49557.2. (a) (1) At the option of the school district or county superintendent of schools, and to the extent necessary to implement Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the following information may be incorporated into the School Lunch Program application packet or notification of eligibility for the School Lunch Program using simple and culturally appropriate language: (A) A notification that if a child qualifies for free school lunches, then the child may qualify for free or reduced-cost health coverage. (B) A request for the consent of the applicant for the child to participate in the Medi-Cal program, if eligible for free school lunches, and to have the information on the school lunch application shared with the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program and notification that if the school district possesses data that indicates that the child already has an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case, the information on the school lunch application will not be shared and the applicant will be told that they already have Medi-Cal or Healthy Families. The notice will tell the family what to do if they do not have a Medi-Cal or Healthy Families card or do not know how to get care. (C) A notification that the school district will not forward the school lunch application to the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program, without the consent of the parent or guardian of the child. (D) A notification that the school lunch application is confidential and, with the exception of forwarding the information for use in health program enrollment upon the consent of the parent or guardian of the child, the school district will not share the information with another governmental agency, including the federal Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. (E) A notification that the school lunch application information will be used only by the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and the state and local agencies that administer the Medi-Cal program for purposes directly related to the administration of the program and will not be shared with other government agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration for any purpose other than the administration of the Medi-Cal program. (F) Information regarding the Medi-Cal program, including available services, program requirements, rights and responsibilities, and privacy and confidentiality requirements. (2) The State Department of Education, in consultation with school districts, county superintendents of schools, consumer advocates, counties, the State Department of Health Care Services, and other stakeholders, shall make recommendations regarding the School Lunch Program application, on or before February 1, 2003. The recommendations shall include specific changes to the School Lunch Program application materials as necessary to implement Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, information for staff as to how to implement the changes, and a description of the process by which information on the School Lunch Program application will be shared with the county, as the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program. (3) At the option of the school, the request for consent in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) may be modified so that the parent or guardian also can consent to allowing Medi-Cal to inform the school as provided in subdivision (n) of Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code when followup is needed in order to complete the Medi-Cal application process. (b) (1) School districts and county superintendents of schools may implement a process to share information provided on the School Lunch Program application with the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and with the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program, and shall share this information with those entities, if the applicant consents to that sharing of information. Schools may designate, only as necessary to implement this section, nonfood service staff to assist in the administration of free, reduced price, or paid school lunch applications that have applicant consent, but only if that designation does not displace or have an adverse effect on food service staff. This information may be shared electronically, physically, or through whatever method is determined appropriate. (2) When a school district possesses data that indicates that a child for whom a National School Lunch Program application has been submitted, and for whom the parent or guardian has consented to share the information provided on the application, already has an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case, the school district shall have the option of not processing the application for an accelerated determination and forwarding it to the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination or the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program pursuant to Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The school shall notify the parent or guardian that the district received notice of their interest in applying for Medi-Cal and that the district has found that the child already has Medi-Cal. The notice shall further state that if the child has not received a Medi-Cal Beneficiary Identification Card or they do not know how to use their Medi-Cal services, the parent or guardian should call the county for assistance. If it is verfied that the child does not have an active Medi-Cal or Healthy Families case, the application of the child shall be processed for an accelerated Medi-Cal determination and forwarded to the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program. (3) Each school district or county superintendent that chooses to share information pursuant to this subdivision shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program, that sets forth the roles and responsibilities of each agency and the process to be used in sharing the information. (4) The local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program shall only use information provided by applicants on the school lunch application for purposes directly related to the administration of the Medi-Cal program. (5) After school districts share information regarding the school lunch application with the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination and the local agency that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program, for the purpose of determining Medi-Cal program eligibility, the local agency and the school district shall not share information about school lunch participation or the Medi-Cal program eligibility information with each other except as specifically authorized under subdivision (n) of Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and other provisions of law. (c) The notifications and consent referenced in subdivision (a) and the procedures set out in subdivision (b) shall include the Healthy Families Program and the relevant county- and local-sponsored health insurance programs as necessary to implement Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. (d) If a school district finds that the child is eligible for reduced price or paid meals under the National School Lunch Program and consent was provided as described in subdivision (b), the entity designated by the State Department of Health Care Services to make an accelerated determination shall notify the parent or guardian of the ineligibility of the child for an accelerated Medi-Cal determination pursuant to Section 14005.41 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The notification shall include information on other available health programs for which the child may be eligible.