Summary — HB 988: Revise Law on Instant Bingo (North Carolina, 2025 Session)
Status: First edition introduced; referred to Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House (filed April 14, 2025). Sponsor: Rep. Hawkins.
Purpose
- Update and clarify North Carolina’s statutory framework for bingo, with a particular focus on instant bingo (pre‑designated paper or digital tickets). The bill revises definitions, operational requirements, prize and session limits, eligibility to operate instant bingo, equipment/testing standards, and accounting/audit rules for proceeds.
Key provisions and changes
- Definitions
- Adds an explicit statutory definition of “instant bingo” as a game using predesignated paper or digital tickets where winners are determined by a preselected designation on the ticket.
- Clarifies/updates definitions for “exempt organization,” “bingo game,” “local law‑enforcement agency,” and related terms.
Eligibility to conduct instant bingo
- Limits which organizations may conduct instant bingo: only organizations exempt under Internal Revenue Code sections 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), or 501(c)(19) (e.g., certain fraternal, membership, and veteran organizations).
Session and prize limits
- Limits bingo sessions to two sessions per week, up to five hours each; sessions must be at least 48 hours apart; no more than two sessions in one facility per calendar week (if two sessions are held they must be by the same exempt organization).
- General bingo: maximum prize per game remains $500; maximum aggregate prizes per session generally $1,500 (but $2,500 if an exempt organization holds only one session in a calendar week).
- Instant bingo: raises the maximum prize per instant bingo game to $600.
Operation and equipment standards
- Makes a special committee of the exempt organization responsible for bingo operations.
- Paper instant bingo tickets must comply with North American Gaming Regulators Association standards (as amended).
- Electronic instant bingo systems must be tested by an independent gaming test laboratory and certified as compliant with the GLI‑14 standard (Gaming Laboratories International).
Accounting, disbursement, and audit
- Requires all funds from bingo to be deposited in a separate bank account and disbursed only for specified purposes (prizes, advertising, utilities, supplies/equipment for bingo, taxes and license fees, and authorized compensation).
- Remaining proceeds must be used for charitable/religious/civic/educational/public‑safety purposes or to support amateur sports or prevention of cruelty; proceeds may not be used for social functions for members.
- Requires annual audits (January 1–December 31 or as directed) on a Division‑approved form and filing with the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division and the relevant local law‑enforcement agency.
Who is affected
- Exempt nonprofit organizations that sponsor bingo (particularly those seeking to run instant bingo): new eligibility limits (only specified 501(c) types may run instant bingo).
- Vendors and manufacturers of instant bingo paper tickets and electronic systems: must meet NAGRA or GLI‑14 standards and testing/certification requirements.
- Independent gaming test laboratories: may see increased demand for GLI‑14 certification work.
- Local law enforcement and the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division: increased oversight and audit responsibilities.
- Players and communities: prize limit changes (instant bingo up to $600) and possible changes in availability depending on which organizations can offer instant bingo.
Potential impacts and compliance considerations
- Administrative/compliance costs for organizations that operate or wish to operate instant bingo (testing/certification of electronic systems, recordkeeping, annual audits).
- Some organizations previously eligible to conduct instant bingo may be restricted if they are not within the specified 501(c) categories.
- Standardization of ticket/electronic-system requirements and tighter accounting/audit rules are intended to reduce fraud risk and improve regulatory oversight.
- Prize increases for instant bingo modestly raise payout potential for players and operating costs for sponsors.
Notes
- The bill also contains technical corrections and several conforming language updates throughout the bingo statutes.
