[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Lexington 6-2-1982 by Ord. No. 1982-3 (Ch. 8 of the 1998 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Peace and good order — See Ch. 135.
Peddling and soliciting — See Ch. 140.
This chapter shall be effective in all of the area within the corporate limits of the City of Lexington.
For the purposes of this chapter, the terms defined in this section have the meanings given them.
BUSINESS
A voluntary organization composed of individuals and businesses who have joined together to advance the commercial, financial, industrial and civic interests of a community.[1]
CHARITABLE
An organization organized and operated to benefit an indefinite number of the public. The service rendered to those eligible for benefits must also confer some benefit on the public.
EDUCATIONAL
An organization or institution organized and operated to provide systematic instruction in useful branches of learning by methods common to schools and institutions of learning which compare favorably in the scope and intensity with the course of study presented in tax-supported schools.
FRATERNAL
An organization of persons having a common interest, the primary interest of which is to both promote the welfare of its members and provide assistance to the general public in such a way as to lessen the burdens of government by caring for those who otherwise would be cared for by the government.
LABOR
An organization composed of workers organized with the objective of betterment of the conditions of those engaged in such, pursuant to the development of a higher degree of efficiency in their respective occupations.
NET PROCEEDS
The gross receipts from the conduct of raffles, less reasonable sums expended for prizes, local license fees and other reasonable operating expenses incurred as a result of operating a raffle.
NONPROFIT
An organization or institution organized and conducted on a not-for-profit basis with no personal profit incurring to anyone as a result of the operation.
RAFFLE
A form of lottery, as defined in Section 28-2(b) of the Criminal Code of 1961,[2] conducted by an organization licensed under this chapter, in which:
A. 
The player pays or agrees to pay something of value for a chance, presented and differentiated by a number or by a combination of numbers or by some other medium, one or more of which chances is to be designated the winning chance.
B. 
The winning chance is to be determined through a drawing or by other method based on an element of chance by an act or set of acts on the part of persons conducting or connected with the lottery, except that the winning chance shall not be determined by the outcome of a publicly exhibited sporting contest.
RELIGIOUS
Any church, congregation, society, or organization founded for the purpose of religious worship.
VETERANS
An organization or association comprised of members of which substantially all are individuals who are veterans or spouses, widows or widowers of veterans, the primary purpose of which is to promote the welfare of its members and to provide assistance to the general public in such a way as to confer a public benefit.
[1]
Editor's Note: Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
[2]
Editor's Note: See 720 ILCS 5/28-2.
A. 
The Mayor shall perform the duties of Raffle Licensing Commissioner.
B. 
The City Council shall perform the duties of the Raffle Licensing Commission.
A. 
It shall be unlawful to sell or offer for sale, in the City of Lexington, any raffle chance without first obtaining a license to operate a raffle or in violation of the terms of said license.
B. 
Application for said license shall be made in writing by the applicant and filed with the City Clerk. Such application shall be accompanied by the appropriate filing fee, if any, as required herein. Such fee shall be by cash, check, or money order. The City Clerk shall refer the application to the Mayor for review.
C. 
The Mayor shall review all applications for Class A licenses and shall, if such application is in compliance with the provisions of this chapter, issue said license. Class A applications shall be acted upon within 15 days from the date of filing such application.
D. 
The City Council shall review all applications for Class B licenses, and, if such application is in compliance with the provisions of this chapter, shall issue said license. The City Council shall act upon a license application within 30 days from the date of application.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
E. 
Licenses shall be issued only to bona fide religious, charitable, labor, business, fraternal, educational, or veterans' organizations that operate without profit to their members and which have been in existence continuously for a period of five years immediately before making application for a license and which have had during that entire five-year period a bona fide membership engaged in carrying out their objects, or to a nonprofit fund-raising organization that the licensing authority determines is organized for the sole purpose of providing financial assistance to an identified individual or group of individuals suffering extreme financial hardship as the result of an illness, disability, accident or disaster.
[Amended 9-9-1991 by Ord. No. 1991-5]
F. 
Licenses issued are subject to the following restrictions:
(1) 
No person, firm or corporation shall conduct raffle chances without having first obtained a license therefor pursuant to this chapter.[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
(2) 
The license and application for license must specify the area or areas within the jurisdiction of this chapter in which raffle chances will be sold or issued, the time period during which raffle chances will be sold or issued, the time of determination of winning chances and the location or locations at which winning chances will be determined.
(3) 
A license application must contain a sworn statement attesting to the not-for-profit character of the prospective licensee organization, signed by the presiding officer and the secretary of that organization.
(4) 
Licenses issued pursuant to this chapter shall be valid for one raffle.
(5) 
The maximum number of days during which raffle chances may be issued or sold for any one raffle shall be 180 days.
G. 
The following are ineligible for any license under this chapter:
(1) 
Any person who has been convicted of a felony.
(2) 
Any person who is or has been a professional gambler or gambling promoter.
(3) 
Any person who is not of good moral character.
(4) 
Any firm or corporation in which a person defined in Subsection G(1), (2), or (3) has a proprietary, equitable or credit interest, or in which such a person is active or employed.
(5) 
Any organization in which a person defined in Subsection G(1), (2), or (3) is an officer, director, or employee, whether compensated or not.
(6) 
Any organization in which a person defined in Subsection G(1), (2), or (3) is to participate in the management or operation of a raffle as defined in this chapter.
A. 
Raffle licenses shall be classified as follows:
(1) 
A Class A license shall authorize the operation of a raffle where the aggregate retail value of all prizes or merchandise awarded by a licensee in a single raffle does not exceed $1,000, where the maximum retail value of each prize awarded by a licensee in a single raffle does not exceed $1,000, and where the maximum price charged for each raffle chance issued or sold does not exceed $5.
(2) 
A Class B license shall authorize the operation of a raffle where either the prize values or the price per chance exceeds the maximums set forth for a Class A license, and where the aggregate retail value of all prizes or merchandise awarded by a licensee in a single raffle does not exceed $20,000, where the maximum retail value of each prize awarded by a licensee in a single raffle does not exceed $20,000 and where the maximum price which may be charged for each raffle chance issued or sold does not exceed $100.
B. 
No raffle shall be conducted and no license for such raffle shall be issued within the territory under the jurisdiction of this chapter where the prize values or the price per chance exceeds the maximums set herein for a Class B license.
C. 
Fees.
(1) 
Filing fees for Class A and Class B licenses shall be as set forth in Chapter 63, Fees.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
(2) 
All fees shall be payable at the time the application is filed, and in the event that the application for a license is denied, the fee shall be returned to the applicant by the City Clerk.
The conducting of raffles is subject to the following restrictions:
A. 
The entire net proceeds of any raffle must be exclusively devoted to the lawful purposes of the organization permitted to conduct that game.
B. 
No person except a bona fide member of the sponsoring organization may participate in the management or operation of the raffle.
C. 
No person may receive any remuneration or profit for participating in the management or operation of the raffle.
D. 
A licensee may rent a premises on which to determine the winning chances in a raffle only from an organization which is also licensed under this chapter.
E. 
Raffle chances may be sold or issued only within the area specified on the license, and winning chances may be determined only at those locations specified on the license.
F. 
No person under the age of 18 years may participate in the conducting of raffles. A person under the age of 18 years may be within the area where winning chances are being determined only when accompanied by a parent or guardian.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
All operation of and the conduct of raffles shall be under the supervision of a single raffle manager designated by the licensed organization. The manager shall give a fidelity bond in a sum equal to the aggregate retail value of all prizes or merchandise to be awarded in the raffle, with two sureties thereon who are residents of Lexington, Illinois, with a solvent surety company licensed to do business in the State of Illinois, in favor of the sponsoring licensee, conditioned upon his honesty and performance of his duties. Terms of the bond shall provide that notice shall be given in writing to the City Council not less than 30 days prior to its cancellation. The issuing authority shall consider the bond and shall have the right to disapprove the bond.
B. 
Said bond shall be conditioned upon the faithful observance by the licensee of this chapter and provisions of all laws of the State of Illinois and the United States of America applying to raffles.
C. 
Waiver of bond requirement.
(1) 
The issuing authority may, in its discretion, waive this bond requirement, subject to the following conditions:
(a) 
Upon the unanimous vote of the members of the licensed organization that said requirement may be waived.
(b) 
A written waiver is filed with the application for the license.
(c) 
The license application must contain a sworn statement attesting to the unanimous vote of the members of the licensed organization, signed by the presiding officer and the secretary of said organization.
(2) 
A license issued to the organization shall include a provision that the fidelity bond has been waived.
A. 
Each organization licensed to conduct raffles shall keep records of its gross receipts, expenses and net proceeds for each single gathering or occasion at which winning games are determined. All deductions from gross receipts for each single gathering or occasion shall be documented with receipts or other records indicating the amount, a description of the purchased item or service or other reason for the deduction, and the recipient. The distribution of net proceeds shall be itemized as to payee, purpose, amount and date of payment.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Gross receipts from the operation of raffle programs shall be segregated from other revenues of the organization, including bingo gross receipts, if bingo games are also conducted by the same nonprofit organization, pursuant to license therefor issued by the Department of Revenue of the State of Illinois, and placed in a separate account. Each organization shall have separate records of its raffles. The person who accounts for gross receipts, expenses, and net proceeds from the operation of raffles shall not be the same person who accounts for other revenues of the organization.
C. 
Each organization licensed to conduct raffles shall report promptly after the conclusion of each raffle to its membership, and to the City Clerk, its gross receipts, expenses and net proceeds from raffles, and the distribution of net proceeds itemized as required in this section.
D. 
Records required by this chapter shall be preserved for three years, and the organization shall make its records relating to operations of raffles available for public inspection at reasonable times and places.
A. 
The City Council, by a majority vote at a convened meeting, may issue, revoke or suspend any license in accordance with the provisions of this chapter or on the basis of provisions of any State of Illinois law pertaining to raffles.
B. 
In case of a tie vote of the members of the City Council at a convened meeting, the Mayor shall vote to break the tie.
C. 
Licenses issued pursuant to this chapter may be suspended or revoked for any violation of this chapter.
D. 
When any licensee shall have its license revoked for any cause, no license shall be granted to said licensee for a period of one year thereafter.
Any person or organization violating any provision of this chapter shall be fined in an amount not to exceed $750, and a separate offense shall be deemed committed each day during or on which the violation occurs or continues.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize the conducting or operating of any gambling scheme, enterprise, activity or device other than raffles as provided for herein.