[HISTORY: Adopted by the Merchantville Borough Council 3-8-2010 by Ord. No. 10-03. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A code authorizing licensing of bona fide organizations or associations of veterans of any war in which the United States has been engaged, churches or religious congregations and religious organizations, charitable educational and fraternal organizations, civic and service clubs, senior citizen associations and clubs, officially recognized volunteer fire companies and officially recognized volunteer first-aid or rescue squads is hereby established pursuant to N.J.S.A. 5:8-24 to 5:8-49.
The said code established and adopted by this chapter is described and commonly known as the "Bingo Licensing Law of New Jersey (1954)."
Three (3) copies of the said Bingo Licensing Law of New Jersey have been placed on file in the office of the Municipal Clerk of this Borough upon the introduction of this chapter and will remain there until final action is taken on this chapter for the use of and examination by the public.
The Borough of Merchantville does hereby delegate the Municipal Clerk of the Borough of Merchantville to be the issuing authority for the purpose of approving and granting bingo and raffle licenses.
No person shall hold, operate or conduct or assist in holding, operating or conducting any games of chance authorized under any license issued under this chapter, except as an active member of an organization, association, church, congregation, society, club, fire company, first-aid or rescue squad or senior citizen association or club to which the license is issued or a member of an organization or association which is an auxiliary to the licensee.
[Amended 4-8-2013 by Ord. No. 13-06]
Each applicant for such a license shall file with the Clerk of the municipality a written application therefor in the form prescribed in N.J.S.A. 5:8-26.
Municipal Clerk shall make an investigation of the qualifications of each applicant with due expedition after the filing of the application, in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 5:8-27.
There shall be a payment of a license fee or fees as set forth in Ch. 25, Fees for each occasion upon which any game or games of chance are to be conducted under such license, in addition to the fee to be collected by the municipality and remitted to the State for each such game of chance. The ten-dollar fee to the municipality shall be waived for any bona fide nonprofit organization such as a charitable, religious or service organization as recognized by U.S.C.A. § 501(c) or (d) or § 401(a).
Note: For current fees, see Chapter 25, Fees.
No license for the holding, operating or conducting of any game or games of chance should be issued under this chapter which shall be effective for a period of more than one year.
No application for the issuance of a license shall be refused by the Municipal Clerk until after a hearing is held on due notice to the applicant, at which the applicant shall be entitled to be heard upon the qualifications of the applicant and the merits of the application.
Each license shall be conspicuously displayed at the place where the game or games are conducted at all times during the conduct thereof.
No person under the age of eighteen (18) years shall be permitted to participate in any game or games of chance held, operated or conducted pursuant to any license issued under this chapter.
No game or games of chance shall be held, operated or conducted under any license issued under this chapter oftener than six (6) days in any calendar month or in any room or outdoor area where alcoholic beverages are sold or served during the progress of the game or games.
There shall be a special license issued to any senior citizen association or club which operates and conducts games of chance solely for the purpose of amusement and recreation of its members. All applicants for such license must comply with the requirements of N.J.S.A. 5:8-25.1.
No game of chance to be conducted under any license issued under this chapter shall be advertised as to its location, the time when it is to be or has been played or the prizes awarded or to be awarded by means of newspaper, radio, television or sound truck or by means of billboards, posters or handbills or any other means addressed to the general public, except that one sign not exceeding sixty (60) square feet in area may be displayed on or adjacent to the premises where the game will be played, and an additional similar sign may be displayed on or adjacent to the premises where the games of chance may be conducted under any license issued under this chapter on any day of the week, including Sunday.
Any person, association or corporation who or which shall make any false statement in any application for any such license or in any statement annexed thereto or shall pay any rental for the use of any premises for holding, operating or conducting any game of chance under this chapter or for any other purpose in connection with the holding, operating or conducting thereof, unless the amount of such rental is stated in a statement annexed to the application for the license as provided in N.J.S.A. 5:8-26, or shall pay or receive any sum for such rental in excess of the sum stated as the rental to be charged therefor in such a statement, executed by him or her or on its behalf, or shall fail to keep such books and records as shall fully and truly record all transactions connected with the holding, operating or conducting of games of chance under any such license or shall falsify or make any false entry in any books or records so far as they relate to any transaction connected with the holding, operating and conducting of any game of chance under any such license or shall violate any of the provisions of this Article or of any term of such license shall be a disorderly person and, if convicted as such, shall, in addition to suffering any other penalties which may be imposed, forfeit any license issued to it under this Article and shall be ineligible to apply for a license under this Article for one (1) year thereafter.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 5:8-31, the holder of any license issued pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 5:8-24 et seq., known as the "Bingo Licensing Law," and pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 5:8-58, the holder of any license issued pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 5:8-50 et seq., known as the "Raffles Licensing Law," shall be permitted to conduct games on the first day of the week commonly known and designated as Sunday, provided that the initial application for any such license shall specify that Sunday permission is requested.