N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 9 § 4821.18

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 43, October 23, 2024

Section 4821.18 - Lawful expenditures

(a) These expenditures, being necessary to conduct bingo, are permissible and do not require prior commission approval. Except as noted below for additional license fees, these expenses shall be reported in part B on forms BC-7 and BC-7Q:

(1) prizes;

(2) purchase and rental of bingo equipment, tables and chairs, public address systems, and bingo cards;

(3) approved rental fees, paid to licensed commercial lessors or to another licensed authorized organization;

(4) payments for janitorial and custodial services, guard service, preparation of BC-7 and BC-7Q forms, and a monthly bookkeeping system;

(5) all bingo license fees paid to the municipality. License fees shall be reported on line B(3) of forms BC-7 and BC-7Q; additional license fees shall be reported on line C(2) of forms BC-7 and BC-7Q;

(6) other necessary bingo expenses, such as printing bingo forms, prize schedules (programs), and house rules; postage, advertising, or bank expenses or charges incurred directly for bingo purposes; fidelity bonds for persons responsible for bingo funds; repairs to bingo equipment; and insurance premiums if the premium directly related to bingo is separate and distinct; and

(7) the direct cost of bus transportation, if authorized by the commission.

(b) The following donations and other expenditures specified for lawful purposes are permissible and do not require prior commission approval. These expenditures shall be reported in part E on forms BC-7 and BC-7Q:

(1) to nationally, Statewide or locally recognized charitable organizations;

(2) for patriotic, civic, and community projects such as activities, observances, or memorials associated with Memorial Day, Independence Day, or Veterans' Day. These expenditures may include the cost of uniforms, instruments, and travel to enable musical bands to participate in such events;

(3) to nationally, Statewide or locally recognized athletic, recreational, or civic programs serving youth;

(4) for educational purposes, such as books or equipment for libraries, schools, or other chartered educational organizations; teacher salaries; exchange student programs; and scholarships that are open to community students, where the recipients are not limited to children of, and the selection committee is not dominated by, members of the licensee or its auxiliaries or affiliates;

(5) for religious purposes and activities, such as clerics' salaries, maintenance of religious buildings, and purchase of religious supplies;

(6) for fire-fighting activities and volunteer ambulance corps, such as expenditures incurred in providing services in case of fire, accidents, sudden severe illness, public calamity, or other emergencies; purchase of vehicles, apparatus, equipment, and uniforms; attending training schools and inspections; participation in drills and exhibitions; membership fees of the licensee in fire-fighting and emergency medical technician associations;

(7) for veterans activities that initiate, perform or foster the provision of services to veterans by encouraging the gathering of such veterans and enable or further the erection or maintenance of facilities for use by such veterans that shall be used primarily for charitable or patriotic purposes or those purposes that shall be authorized by a bona fide organization of veterans, provided however that such proceeds are disbursed in accordance with the rules and regulations of the commission.

(c) All other donations and other expenditures, provided they are reasonable and are directly related to the licensee's lawful purposes as defined in General Municipal Law section 476(6), are permissible and/or required as follows:

(1) for an organization engaged exclusively in one or more of the lawful purposes specified in subdivision (b) of this section, all such expenditures except those listed in paragraph (3) below of this subdivision are permissible and do not require prior commission approval;

(2) an authorized organization may disburse bingo funds towards the following operating expenses without obtaining prior commission approval:

(i) no more than $10,000 per calendar year for materials and labor for building repairs that are necessary for normal maintenance, such as electrical, roofing, heating, hardware, paint, and lumber;

(ii) janitorial and custodial salaries, including payroll taxes;

(iii) janitorial and cleaning supplies;

(iv) utilities, including electricity, heat, and water;

(v) rubbish and snow removal;

(vi) insurance, including fire, workers' compensation, public liability, burglary, robbery, and property damage;

(vii) real estate taxes;

(viii) telephone charges;

(ix) printing and mailing charges; and

(x) no more than $5,000 per calendar year for legal, accounting or other professional fees.

(3) all organizations, with the exception of veterans' organizations, shall submit and have approved by the commission form BC-317 (Application for Permission to Disburse Net Proceeds of Bingo), prior to disbursing bingo funds for any of the purposes set forth in this paragraph . A veterans' organization may disburse bingo funds for such purposes, so long as a copy of the organization's minutes from a membership meeting authorizing the expenditure or expenditures are filed with the commission:

(i) mortgages;

(ii) rent paid to lessors other than for bingo;

(iii) more than $10,000 per calendar year for new buildings, or additions, renovations, or repairs to existing buildings ;

(iv) purchase of air conditioning units, furniture, furnishings, office and kitchen equipment, and motor vehicles;

(v) repair, maintenance and acquisition of parking lots;

(vi) salaries, other than those specified above in paragraphs (4) of subdivision (a) and (5) of subdivision (b) of this section, and subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (2) of this subdivision; and

(vii) more than $5,000 per calendar year for legal, accounting or other professional fees.

(4) All organizations, with the exception of veterans' organizations, shall submit and have approved by the commission form BC-317 (application for permission to disburse net proceeds of bingo), prior to disbursing bingo funds for any of the following purposes. A veterans' organization may disburse bingo funds for such purposes, provided a copy of the organization's minutes from a membership meeting authorizing the expenditure(s) are filed with the commission;

(i) mortgages;

(ii) rent paid to lessors other than for bingo;

(iii) more than $10,000 per calendar year for new buildings, or additions, renovations, or repairs to existing building(s);

(iv) purchase of air conditioning units, furniture, furnishings, office and kitchen equipment, and motor vehicles;

(v) repair, maintenance and acquisition of parking lots;

(vi) salaries, other than those specified above in paragraphs (a)(4) and (b)(5) of this section, and subparagraph (3)(ii) of this subdivision; and

(vii) more than $5,000 per calendar year for legal, accounting, or other professional fees.

(d) All types of authorized organizations may not use bingo funds for the expenditures et forth in this subdivision, except that an organization of veterans, in strict compliance with such organization's charter and bylaws, shall file with the commission a copy of the minutes of the meeting of membership authorizing any of the expenditures set forth in this subdivision:

(1) entertainment or social activities for the benefit of members of the licensee organization, its auxiliaries or affiliates. Bingo funds can never be used for the exclusive benefit of members of the licensee organization, its auxiliaries or affiliates;

(2) convention expenses for delegates of the licensee organization, its auxiliaries or affiliates;

(3) any expenses connected with bars or the dispensing of alcoholic beverages;

(4) television or other amusement devices for use of the licensee organization, its auxiliaries or affiliates; and

(5) expenses and salaries connected with other fund raising activities, such as the operation of food service facilities and concessions;

(e) The following expenditures are never a permissible use of bingo funds:

(1) welfare, sick, or death benefit funds for members and families;

(2) dues and assessments;

(3) gifts or loans to members of the licensee organization, its auxiliaries or affiliates; and

(4) tickets purchased from profit or not-for-profit organizations, such as theatre tickets or raffle tickets, for use by members.

(f) Interest-bearing accounts.

(1) Pending disbursement, bingo funds may be transferred from the special bingo checking account into one or more interest-bearing savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit insured by the U.S. Government, or U.S. Treasury Bills. Each such interest-bearing account shall be designated a "special bingo account," and these funds shall remain part of the unexpended balance of bingo funds at all times. Prior approval by the commission of such inter-account transfers is not required, but a memo describing each transfer shall be filed with the applicable financial statement to the commission. Such memo shall recite the date, check number, amount, and a complete description of the account into which the bingo funds were transferred, including the account number and the bank name, address, and telephone number.

(2) No disbursement may be made directly from any interest-bearing account; the funds must be re-deposited into the special bingo checking account and then processed in compliance with section 4821.9 of this Part.

(3) Where a building fund is established by an organization, it must be administered in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section. In addition, for all organizations except veterans, expenditures from a building fund are permissible only if the commission, having received form BC-317 from the organization, gives prior written approval. For an organization of veterans, these expenditures are permissible only if the minutes from a membership meeting authorizing such expenditures are filed with the commission.

(4) Interest earned in an interest-bearing account shall remain part of the unexpended bingo balance at all times and shall be reported at least once a year on line E(4) of form BC-7 and on line (D)(3) of form BC-7Q.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 9 § 4821.18

Amended New York State Register June 2, 2021/Volume XLIII, Issue 22, eff. 6/2/2021