Year by Year Comparison

In the previous 3 years the 1^st quarter grand totals for charitable gaming activity have averaged approximately $32.3 million annually. The 1^st quarter 2021 total reached $30,817,229, which, though within average range, shows a very promising trend for the year to come as licensees begin to open back up to 100% as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.

In looking at a 4-year comparison of the 1^st quarter numbers for bingo, pull tabs and raffle, we see that raffles continue to grow year-over-year, a very promising trend. The 1^st quarter saw several large raffles, including the Children’s Hospital and Boys and Girls House raffles; – both having online sales in the millions, driving the overall totals. In addition to this, it is also very encouraging to see so many other groups reporting significant raffle revenue totals. Of the top 20 grossing raffles 8 had online sales, the other raffles were held by either schools, churches or organizations with large memberships, such as Lions, or state-wide chapters. Raffles have been popular during the pandemic because social distancing was possible. Pull tabs at Bar/Clubroom report totals that are double the previous 3-year average, also made possible with social distancing. Bingo numbers have been affected by the inability to social distance, however these numbers are prior to the April reopening of the state. With the state opening back up we can look forward to continued growth in revenue in the quarters to come.

Complete numbers can be found on bingo and raffles home page under the charitable gaming financial reports.

Additional Items Needed with Quarterlies

PLEASE REMEMBER: If your organization has a credit card/debit card, EFT's or the like, set up with your Bingo-Raffle account, we will need copies of the receipts/statements from these transactions submitted with your quarterly to show where your bingo-raffle funds are being used.

In addition, if you reimburse an individual for purchasing an item for a raffle, first, this should not occur on a consistent basis, as funds used from the Bingo-Raffle account need to be written directly to the business or vendor from which the prize is being purchased. Second, if there are circumstances where this was not possible, we would need an explanation of the circumstance where this occurred, and a copy of the receipt that was issued to the person who purchased the item to which the organization is writing a check from the bingo-raffle account.

These additions need to be submitted with each quarterly report where these circumstances occur.

Tips for Successfully Filing an Online Quarterly Report

Here are some tips our office would like to provide to assist with successfully filing your quarterly report with our online system:

• When filing a quarterly where no raffle tickets were sold, no bingo games were conducted, and no pulltab tickets were sold, (but the organization is planning to conduct one of these activities or sell tickets still within the year), be sure to mark the quarterly as a “no activity”. No activity reports mean that you did not sell any raffle tickets, conduct a bingo game, or sell any pulltab tickets during the quarter for which you are filing. You still may have spent money from your bingo-raffle account or had expenses, and these items can still be entered on a “no activity” report.
• When completing the raffle prize descriptions on your quarterly, please be sure to give enough detail. As an example, if you gave away gift cards as raffle prizes, list the type of gift card or what the gift card was for. Another example would be if your prizes were “gift baskets”, you will need to include a list of what items were included in each gift basket given as a prize.
• Within the “check” column on the Schedule A: Distribution of Proceeds, if you make other types of payments from your Bingo-Raffle account other than checks, please make note of these in this column. As an example, you may list payments types such as check#, CC = Credit Card, DC=Debit Card or EFT/AFT =Electronic or Automatic Funds Transfer, for the different types of payments, if any of these additional types are done from the Bingo-Raffle account.

Games Manager Training

Your organization must have at least one certified Games Manager in order to run charitable games. We recommend licensees maintain more than one Games Manager. To support this, we offer in-person and online Games Manager training courses.

Sign up for the online eLearning course on our website.

All live classes have currently been cancelled due to COVID 19. Please go to the this link for further updates on live classes.

Investigator Tips

Each quarter, we include a few tips from our Bingo/Raffle Investigators. They gather a lot of information in the field with areas where licensees have compliance challenges. By sharing this information, we hope that licensees can better serve their customers.

A MESSAGE FROM THE INVESTIGATORS-A Successful Alternative:

Our office would like to point out a successful and legal amendment to a bingo event that occurred with a licensee who contacted our office with the following idea of a “parking lot” or “drive up” bingo. This was a boon to the group and the public for participation in a fund-raising event.

Andy Gonzales, Administrator with LO Moose 909 Greeley/Evans, reports that he assisted in the planning and conducting of a “Drive Up” bingo. LO Moose 909 conducted a “Drive Up” Bingo in the parking lot of the lodge. Their goal was to award the progressive jackpot that had accumulated prior to the Covid-19 stay at home order. They reported they had 119 players and were very successful.

To run the game outside he used a generator to run the cash register and plugged in all electronics into outlets from the building. They set up a concession under a tent and a point of sale under another tent. They had two big inflatable screens that projected the caller and the other displayed the last ball called. The players sat in their car and when a winning combination was accomplished they would honk and flash their lights. They were able to verify their bingo in front of another player in a different car.

The game was successful and they plan to conduct more during the summer months. They will be setting up a caller stand in the parking lot with possibly another inflatable screen display board which shows ball called.

Mr. Gonzales stated “We sold everything the exact same way we do inside” and they are excited for the next “Drive Up” Bingo.

You can access all bingo/raffle laws using our Bingo-Raffles Law Handbook. Please feel free to contact our office with any questions.