RI 2026 H7197: Criminal Offenses - Gambling and Lotteries

Plain-English Summary

This bill updates Rhode Island law to allow "social gaming," such as poker nights, in private homes, provided the host does not make a profit from the game itself. It also permits private businesses, clubs, and bars to host social games and "office pools" for sporting events. To run a pool, a business cannot take a cut of the money; all entry fees must be paid out to winners. Bars with liquor licenses must obtain a $100 permit to host pools. Nonprofits may also run pools and keep up to 25% of proceeds for charity.

For younger readers

This new rule changes the laws about playing games for money. It says that friends can play card games for money at a house, as long as the person hosting the party doesn't charge money just to let people play. It also lets people at work or clubs put money into a pot for sports games, like guessing who will win the Super Bowl. The person running the game has to give all the money to the winners and cannot keep any for themselves. Some charities can keep a small part of the money to help people.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Social gamblersLiquor license holdersNonprofit organizationsPrivate clubsDepartment of Business Regulation

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost

None

Estimated revenue

$100/permit for liquor license holders

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Decriminalizes victimless social behaviors, reducing the risk of ordinary citizens interacting with the criminal justice system for private activities like home poker games.
Provides a new fundraising avenue for nonprofit organizations by allowing them to retain a portion of pool proceeds for charitable purposes.
Fosters community building and social interaction by legally protecting "bona fide social relationships" and communal activities in shared spaces.
May normalize gambling behaviors, potentially increasing the risk of addiction among vulnerable populations who view office pools or social gaming as harmless entry points.
Integrating gambling permits with liquor licenses could encourage the mixing of alcohol and gambling in public venues, potentially leading to poor decision-making and financial harm.
Could create a "gray market" where enforcement of the "no profit" rule is difficult, potentially allowing unscrupulous business owners to exploit patrons under the guise of social gaming.

For Conservatives

Protects personal liberty and privacy by removing government prohibitions on what consenting adults can do inside their own private residences.
Reduces government overreach by deregulating common social practices that were previously technically illegal, aligning law with actual public behavior.
Supports freedom of association for private clubs and businesses, allowing them to offer activities their members and customers desire without fear of prosecution.
Imposes a new bureaucratic hurdle and fee on business owners by requiring liquor license holders to pay $100 and apply for a permit to allow simple office pools.
Could be viewed as eroding traditional moral values by legally sanctioning gambling activities in widespread social settings and public accommodations.
May lead to a disrespect for the rule of law if the specific regulations (like the "no profit" clause) are widely ignored or impossible to enforce effectively.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 44 additions · 2 deletions

SECTION 1. Sections 11-19-1 and 11-19-18 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-19 entitled "Gambling and Lotteries" are hereby amended to read as follows: 11-19-1. Forms of gambling prohibited. ~~Every~~ Except as provided in §§ 11-19-46 and 11-19-47, every person who shall, directly or indirectly, set up, put forth, carry on, promote, or draw, publicly or privately, any lottery, chance, game, or device of any nature or kind whatsoever, or by whatsoever name it may be called, for the purpose of exposing, setting for sale or disposing of any money, houses, lands, merchandise, or articles of value, or shall sell or expose to sale lottery policies, purporting to be governed by the drawing of any public or private lottery, or shall sign or endorse any book, document, or paper whatsoever, for the purpose of enabling others to sell, or expose to sale, lottery policies, except as authorized in this chapter and in title 41 and chapters 61 and 61.2 of title 42, shall be deemed guilty of a felony and shall be imprisoned not exceeding two (2) years or be fined not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000). 11-19-18. Keeping of gambling places or devices — Acting as dealer, banker, or lookout. ~~Every~~ Except as provided in §§ 11-19-46 and 11-19-47, every person who shall keep or suffer to be kept any building, room, booth, shed, tent, arbor, or any other place, or any automobile, bus, coach, van, truck, trainer, railway or railroad car, or any other vehicle in any city or town of this state, or in any vessel, boat, or raft upon any of the waters of Narragansett Bay, to be used or occupied for the purpose of gambling, or playing at any game or games of chance of any kind whatsoever, for money or other valuable consideration, or shall keep, exhibit, or suffer to be kept or exhibited upon premises or in a vehicle belonging to that person under his or her control, any cards, dice, table, bowls, wheel of fortune, shuffleboard, or billiard table, or any device, implement, or apparatus whatsoever to be used in gambling or playing at any game or games of chance for money or other valuable consideration, or who shall be guilty of dealing Faro, or banking for others to deal Faro, or acting as lookout, gamekeeper, or assistant for the game of Faro or any other banking game where money or property is dependent on the result, shall be taken and held to be a common gambler and shall be imprisoned not exceeding two (2) years or be fined not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000) nor less than five hundred dollars ($500).

SECTION 2. Chapter 11-19 of the General Laws entitled "Gambling and Lotteries" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following sections: 11-19-46. Social gaming permitted.

(a) For purposes of this section "social gaming" means a game other than a lottery, between players where gambling is incidental to a bona fide social relationship between participants and where no person other than the players participating in the social game are entitled to receive anything of value and provided that none of the participants are involved with professional gambling, shall be permitted under this chapter.

(b) No host of a social game under this chapter shall be guilty of promoting a form of illegal gambling when the host, in a private residence, offers gaming allowable under subsection (a) of this section; provided, that the participants are invitees of the owner/tenant, and the owner/tenant derives no monetary benefit, in the form of entry fees, and does not intend to derive a profit from aiding or inducing another to gamble by hosting the event; provided, however, that the host may benefit from being a participant in the game. 11-19-47. Places social gambling permitted.

(a) Notwithstanding any general law to the contrary, it shall not be illegal for any private business, private club or place of public accommodation to allow on its premises:

(1) Social gaming allowed under § 11-19-46; provided, that the owner or operator of the premises derives no monetary benefit from and does not intend to derive a profit from aiding or inducing another to gamble by allowing the gaming to occur on the premises; or

(2) The running of "office pools" based on the result or occurrence of a social or sporting event; provided that:

(i) No money is withheld from the amount paid by the participants by the operator or the promoter of the pool;

(ii) All monies paid by the participants, as an entry fee or otherwise, are paid out to the winner(s) based on the result of the pool;

(iii) That prior to participation each entrant has an equal chance to win the pool;

(iv) Participants shall be of legal age as provided pursuant to the provisions of § 15-12-1; and

(v) That holders of liquor licenses who desire to run office pools are required to apply for a permit to conduct such activities as part of the liquor license. Such holders shall pay a fee of one hundred dollars ($100) for said permit to the department of business regulation and display the permit prominently along with their liquor license.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, a nonprofit organization may petition the state police to run a pool, in the same manner as prescribed in § 11-19-31, and withhold an amount of the money in the pool for its charitable purposes, as long as:

(1) The percentage of the money to be withheld from the total amount of the pool does not exceed twenty-five percent (25%) and is clearly spelled out prior to the entrants' participation;

(2) No outside agent or professional fundraisers derive a profit from the activity; and

(3) The disbursement of proceeds is limited to the pool winner(s), de minimis expense incurred in running the pool, and the charity itself.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.