BILL NUMBER: AB 1290 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 31, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Lara
FEBRUARY 18, 2011
An act to amend Section 19801 19817
of the Business and Professions Code, relating to gambling.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1290, as amended, Lara. Gambling.
California Gambling Control Commission: Gaming Policy Advisory
Committee.
Existing law establishes the California Gambling Control
Commission and requires the commission to establish a Gaming Policy
Advisory Committee composed of representatives of controlled gambling
licensees and members of the general public. Existing law requires
the executive director of the commission to convene this advisory
committee, from time to time, for the purpose of discussing
recommended controlled gambling regulatory policy.
This bill would require the advisory committee to meet at least
twice a year and would require the commission to consult with the
committee on recommended proposed regulations.
The Gambling Control Act provides for the licensure of certain
individuals and establishments involved in various gambling
activities, and for the regulation of those activities, by the
California Gambling Control Commission. The act sets forth related
findings and declarations.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those
findings and declarations.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 19817 of the
Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
19817. The commission shall establish and appoint a Gaming Policy
Advisory Committee of 10 members. The committee shall be composed of
representatives of controlled gambling licensees and members of the
general public in equal numbers. The executive director shall, from
time to time, convene the committee for the purpose of discussing
matters of controlled gambling regulatory policy and any other
relevant gambling-related issue , provided that the committee
shall meet at least twice a year. The commission shall consult with
the committee on proposed regulations . The recommendations
concerning gambling policy and proposed regulations made
by the committee shall be presented to the commission, but shall be
deemed advisory and not binding on the commission in the performance
of its duties or functions. The committee may
shall not advise the commission on Indian gaming.
SECTION 1. Section 19801 of the Business and
Professions Code is amended to read:
19801. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) State law prohibits commercially operated lotteries, banked or
percentage games, and gambling machines, and strictly regulates
parimutuel wagering on horse racing. To the extent that state law
categorically prohibits certain forms of gambling and prohibits
gambling devices, nothing herein shall be construed, in any manner,
to reflect a legislative intent to relax those prohibitions.
(b) The State of California has permitted the operation of
gambling establishments for more than 100 years. Gambling
establishments were first regulated by the State of California
pursuant to legislation that was enacted in 1984. Gambling
establishments currently employ more than 20,000 people in the State
of California, and contribute more than one hundred million dollars
($100,000,000) in taxes and fees to California's government. Gambling
establishments are lawful enterprises in the State of California,
and are entitled to full protection of the laws of this state.
(c) Gambling can become addictive and is not an activity to be
promoted or legitimized as entertainment for children and families.
(d) Unregulated gambling enterprises are inimical to the public
health, safety, welfare, and good order. Accordingly, no person in
this state has a right to operate a gambling enterprise, except as
may be expressly permitted by the laws of this state and by the
ordinances of local governmental bodies.
(e) It is the policy of this state that gambling activities that
are not expressly prohibited or regulated by state law may be
prohibited or regulated by local government. Moreover, it is the
policy of this state that no new gambling establishment may be opened
in a city, county, or city and county in which a gambling
establishment was not operating on and before January 1, 1984, except
upon the affirmative vote of the electors of that city, county, or
city and county.
(f) It is not the purpose of this chapter to expand opportunities
for gambling, or to create any right to operate a gambling enterprise
in this state or to have a financial interest in any gambling
enterprise. Rather, it is the purpose of this chapter to regulate
businesses that offer otherwise lawful forms of gambling games.
(g) Public trust that permissible gambling will not endanger
public health, safety, or welfare requires that comprehensive
measures be enacted to ensure that gambling is free from criminal and
corruptive elements, that it is conducted honestly and
competitively, and that it is conducted in suitable locations.
(h) Public trust and confidence can only be maintained by strict
and comprehensive regulation of all persons, locations, practices,
associations, and activities related to the operation of lawful
gambling establishments and the manufacture and distribution of
permissible gambling equipment.
(i) All gambling operations, all persons having a significant
involvement in gambling operations, all establishments where gambling
is conducted, and all manufacturers, sellers, and distributors of
gambling equipment must be licensed and regulated to protect the
public health, safety, and general welfare of the residents of this
state as an exercise of the police powers of the state.
(j) To ensure that gambling is conducted honestly, competitively,
and free of criminal and corruptive elements, all licensed gambling
establishments in this state must remain open to the general public,
and the access of the general public to licensed gambling activities
must not be restricted in any manner, except as provided by the
Legislature. However, subject to state and federal prohibitions
against discrimination, nothing herein shall be construed to preclude
exclusion of unsuitable persons from licensed gambling
establishments in the exercise of reasonable business judgment.
(k) In order to effectuate state policy as declared herein, it is
necessary that gambling establishments, activities, and equipment be
licensed, that persons participating in those activities be licensed
or registered, that certain transactions, events, and processes
involving gambling establishments and owners of gambling
establishments be subject to prior approval or permission, that
unsuitable persons not be permitted to associate with gambling
activities or gambling establishments, and that gambling activities
take place only in suitable locations. Any license or permit issued,
or other approval granted pursuant to this chapter, is declared to be
a revocable privilege, and no holder acquires any vested right
therein or thereunder.
(l) The location of lawful gambling premises, the hours of
operation of those premises, the number of tables permitted in those
premises, and wagering limits in permissible games conducted in those
premises are proper subjects for regulation by local governmental
bodies. However, consideration of those same subjects by a state
regulatory agency, as specified in this chapter, is warranted when
local governmental regulation respecting those subjects is inadequate
or the regulation fails to safeguard the legitimate interests of
residents in other governmental jurisdictions.
(m) The exclusion or ejection of certain persons from gambling
establishments is necessary to effectuate the policies of this
chapter and to maintain effectively the strict regulation of licensed
gambling.
(n) Records and reports of cash and credit transactions involving
gambling establishments may have a high degree of usefulness in
criminal and regulatory investigations and, therefore, licensed
gambling operators may be required to keep records and make reports
concerning significant cash and credit transactions.