2006 Minnesota Statutes

349.18 PREMISES USED FOR GAMBLING.
    Subdivision 1. Lease or ownership required; rent limitations. (a) An organization may
conduct lawful gambling only on premises it owns or leases. Leases must be on a form prescribed
by the board. The term of the lease may not begin before the effective date of the premises permit
and must expire on the same day that the premises permit expires. Leases approved by the board
must specify that the board may authorize an organization to withhold rent from a lessor for a
period of up to 90 days if the board determines that illegal gambling occurred on the premises and
that the lessor or its employees participated in the illegal gambling or knew of the gambling and
did not take prompt action to stop the gambling. The lease must authorize the continued tenancy
of the organization without the payment of rent during the time period determined by the board
under this paragraph. Copies of all leases must be made available to employees of the board and
the Division of Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement on request. The board may prescribe by rule
limits on the amount of rent which an organization may pay to a lessor for premises leased for
bingo. Any rule adopted by the board limiting the amount of rent to be paid may only be effective
for leases entered into, or renewed, after the effective date of the rule.
(b) Rent paid by an organization for leased premises for the conduct of pull-tabs, tipboards,
and paddlewheels is subject to the following limits:
(1) for booth operations, including booth operations where a pull-tab dispensing device is
located, booth operations where a bar operation is also conducted, and booth operations where
both a pull-tab dispensing device is located and a bar operation is also conducted, the maximum
rent is:
(i) in any month where the organization's gross profit at those premises does not exceed
$4,000, up to $400; and
(ii) in any month where the organization's gross profit at those premises exceeds $4,000, up
to $400 plus not more than ten percent of the gross profit for that month in excess of $4,000;
(2) for bar operations, including bar operations where a pull-tab dispensing device is located
but not including bar operations subject to clause (1), and for locations where only a pull-tab
dispensing device is located:
(i) in any month where the organization's gross profit at those premises does not exceed
$1,000, up to $200; and
(ii) in any month where the organization's gross profit at those premises exceeds $1,000, up
to $200 plus not more than 20 percent of the gross profit for that month in excess of $1,000;
(3) a lease not governed by clauses (1) and (2) must be approved by the board before
becoming effective;
(4) total rent paid to a lessor from all organizations from leases governed by clause (1)
may not exceed $1,750 per month. Total rent paid to a lessor from all organizations from leases
governed by clause (2) may not exceed $2,500 per month.
(c) Rent paid by an organization for leased premises for the conduct of bingo is subject to
either of the following limits at the option of the parties to the lease:
(1) not more than ten percent of the monthly gross profit from all lawful gambling activities
held during bingo occasions excluding bar bingo or at a rate based on a cost per square foot
not to exceed 110 percent of a comparable cost per square foot for leased space as approved
by the director; and
(2) no rent may be paid for bar bingo.
(d) Amounts paid as rent under leases are all-inclusive. No other services or expenses
provided or contracted by the lessor may be paid by the organization, including, but not limited
to, trash removal, janitorial and cleaning services, snow removal, lawn services, electricity, heat,
security, security monitoring, storage, other utilities or services, and, in the case of bar operations,
cash shortages, unless approved by the director. Any other expenditure made by an organization
that is related to a leased premises must be approved by the director. An organization may not
provide any compensation or thing of value to a lessor or the lessor's employees from any fund
source other than its gambling account. Rent payments may not be made to an individual.
(e) Notwithstanding paragraph (b), an organization may pay a lessor for food or beverages
or meeting room rental if the charge made is comparable to similar charges made to other
individuals or groups.
(f) No entity other than the licensed organization may conduct any activity within a booth
operation on a leased premises.
(g) Employees of a lessor not involved in the conduct of lawful gambling on the premises or
nongambling employees of an organization conducting lawful gambling on the premises may
participate in lawful gambling on the premises provided if pull-tabs or tipboards are sold, the
organization posts the major prizes awarded.
(h) A gambling employee may purchase pull-tabs or tipboards at the site of the employee's
place of employment provided:
(1) the organization posts the major prizes for pull-tab or tipboard games; and
(2) the employee is not involved in the sale of pull-tabs or tipboards at that site.
(i) At a leased site where an organization uses a paddlewheel consisting of 30 numbers or
less or a tipboard consisting of 30 tickets or less, tickets may be sold throughout the permitted
premises, but winning tickets must be redeemed, the paddlewheel must be located, and the
tipboard seal must be opened within the leased premises.
    Subd. 1a. Storage of gambling equipment. (a) Gambling equipment owned by or in the
possession of an organization must be kept at a permitted premises owned or leased by the
organization, or at other storage sites within the state that the organization has notified the
board are being used as gambling equipment storage sites. At each storage site or permitted
premises, the organization must have the invoices or true and correct copies of the invoices for the
purchase of all gambling equipment at the site or premises. Gambling equipment owned by an
organization may not be kept at a distributor's office, warehouse, storage unit, or other place of
the distributor's business.
(b) Gambling equipment, other than devices for selecting bingo numbers, owned by an
organization must be secured and kept separate from gambling equipment owned by other
persons, organizations, distributors, or manufacturers.
(c) Paddlewheels must be covered or disabled when not in use by the organization in the
conduct of lawful gambling.
(d) Gambling equipment kept in violation of this subdivision is contraband under section
349.2125.
(e) An organization may transport gambling equipment it owns or possesses between
approved gambling equipment storage sites and to and from licensed distributors, if the invoices
or true and correct copies of the invoices for the organization's acquisition of the gambling
equipment accompany the gambling equipment at all times and are available for inspection.
    Subd. 2. Exceptions. (a) An organization may conduct raffles on a premise it does not
own or lease.
(b) An organization may, with the permission of the board, conduct bingo on premises it
does not own or lease for up to 12 consecutive days in a calendar year, in connection with a
county fair, the state fair, or a civic celebration.
(c) A licensed organization may, after compliance with section 349.213, conduct lawful
gambling on premises other than the organization's permitted premises for four days per calendar
year and one event up to 12 consecutive days in a calendar year in connection with a county
fair, the state fair, a church festival, or a civic celebration. A lease for that time period for the
exempted premises must accompany the request to the board.
    Subd. 3. Proceeds from rental. Rental proceeds from premises owned by an organization
and leased to one or more other organizations for the purposes of conducting lawful gambling
shall not be reported as gambling proceeds under this chapter.
    Subd. 4. Prohibition. (a) An organization may not pay rent to itself or to any of its affiliates
for use of space for conducting lawful gambling.
(b) An organization may not pay rent for space for conducting lawful gambling from any
account or fund other than the organization's separate gambling account.
    Subd. 5. Certain agreements prohibited. An organization may not enter into or be a party
to a lending agreement under which any of the organization's receipts from lawful gambling
are pledged as collateral for a loan.
History: 1976 c 261 s 8; 1984 c 502 art 12 s 12; 1986 c 467 s 18; 1987 c 327 s 17,18; 1989
c 334 art 2 s 27,28; 1990 c 590 art 1 s 31; 1991 c 233 s 109; 1991 c 336 art 2 s 26,27; 1994 c 633
art 5 s 74-76; 1996 c 467 s 6; 1997 c 129 art 2 s 15; 1998 c 322 s 4; 2000 c 300 s 5,6; 2003 c 110
s 36; 2004 c 172 s 6,7; 2005 c 166 art 1 s 30; 2006 c 205 s 24