PLEASE NOTE: Legislative Information cannot perform research, provide legal advice, or interpret Maine law. For legal assistance, please contact a qualified attorney.
An Act To Improve the Operation of "Texas Hold 'Em" Tournaments
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 17 MRSA §331, sub-§1,  as amended by PL 1975, c. 740, §5, is further amended to read:
 
1. License required.  NoExcept as provided in subsection 2-C, no person, firm, corporation, association or organization shallmay hold, conduct or operate a game of chance within the State unless a license therefor is obtained from the Chief of the State Police, or the game of chance constitutes "social gambling" as that term is defined by Title 17-A, section 952, subsection 8.
Sec. 2. 17 MRSA §331, sub-§2-C  is enacted to read:
 
2-C.  "Texas hold 'em" poker tournaments; certain nonprofit organizations.     Notwithstanding the licensing requirements set forth in this chapter, a bona fide nonprofit charitable, educational, political, civic, recreational, fraternal, patriotic, religious or veterans' organization is authorized to hold a maximum of 6 "Texas hold 'em" poker tournaments annually without obtaining a license from the Chief of the State Police if:
 
A.  The nonprofit organization has been in existence and founded, chartered or organized in the State for at least 7 years; and
 
B.  The nonprofit organization owns, rents or leases a building or facility in which to hold the "Texas hold 'em" poker tournaments.
 
A nonprofit organization that hold a "Texas hold 'em" poker tournament pursuant to this subsection must notify the Chief of the State Police of that organization's intention to hold the tournament at least 24 hours in advance of the tournament.
 
For purposes of this subsection, "Texas Hold 'em" means a card game in which each player may use any combination from 5 cards dealt face-up on the card table and the player's own 2 cards to make a 5-card poker hand. The Chief of the State Police may adopt rules to implement this subsection. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
 
SUMMARY
This bill provides that a bona fide nonprofit charitable, educational, political, civic, recreational, fraternal, patriotic, religious or veterans' organization is authorized to hold a maximum of 6 "Texas hold 'em" poker tournaments annually without obtaining a license from the Chief of the State Police if the organization possesses a building or facility in which to hold the tournaments and has been in existence and founded, chartered or organized in the State for at least 7 years.