Section 475. Short title; purpose of article  


Latest version.
  • This article shall be known
      and may be cited as the bingo licensing law.    The  legislature  hereby
      declares  that  the  raising  of  funds  for  the promotion of bona fide
      charitable,  educational,  scientific,  health,  religious,  civic   and
      patriotic   causes   and   undertakings,  where  the  beneficiaries  are
      indefinite, is  in  the  public  interest.  It  hereby  finds  that,  as
      conducted  prior to the enactment of this article, bingo was the subject
      of exploitation by  professional  gamblers,  promoters,  and  commercial
      interests.    It  is hereby declared to be the policy of the legislature
      that all phases of the supervision, licensing and  regulation  of  bingo
      and of the conduct of bingo games, should be closely controlled and that
      the laws and regulations pertaining thereto should be strictly construed
      and  rigidly  enforced;  that  the conduct of the game and all attendant
      activities should be so regulated and adequate controls so instituted as
      to discourage commercialization in all its forms, including  the  rental
      of  commercial  premises  for  bingo  games,  and  to  ensure  a maximum
      availability of the net proceeds of bingo exclusively for application to
      the worthy causes and  undertakings  specified  herein;  that  the  only
      justification  for  this  article  is  to foster and support such worthy
      causes and undertakings, and that the mandate of section nine of article
      one of the state constitution, as amended,  should  be  carried  out  by
      rigid   regulation   to   prevent   commercialized   gambling,   prevent
      participation by criminal and other undesirable elements and prevent the
      diversion of funds from the purposes herein authorized.