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Two Senate-passed bills to help modernize small games of chance run by nonprofits cleared a House committee Tuesday.
The two bills seek to give nonprofits greater fundraising opportunities by using current technology.
The Gaming Oversight Committee amended both Senate Bill 398 and Senate Bill 416. That action means both bills will need Senate concurrence to win final passage as the legislative session enters its final phase.
Both bills now go to the House floor.
The committee added a substantive amendment to SB398 regarding letting fire companies with a small games of chance license run online raffles for fundraising.
The original bill provided for two online raffles during a trial year.
The amended version provides for unlimited online raffles during 2027. SB398 has no impact on existing in-person raffles.
Sen. Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, the bill sponsor, has called SB398 a pilot program.
Rep. Dane Watro, R-Schuylkill, offered the amendment for unlimited raffles. He said it reflects that some fire companies offer up to 35 in-person raffles a week.
Committee Majority Chair Patrick Harkins, D-Erie, supported the amendment and it won unanimous approval.
Credit card payments
Senate Bill 416, approved by a unanimous vote, lets licensed organizations accept payment with credit and debit cards and other electronic methods for purchase of raffle tickets.
SB416 requires game operators to verify a ticket purchaser is at least 18 years old.
The committee amended SB416 to require they verify a purchaser is in Pennsylvania at the time of ticket purchase.
Under current state law, nonprofits are limited to accepting cash or checks for these transactions.
Committee Minority Chair Russ Diamond, R-Lebanon, said SB416 brings small games fundraising into the 21st century.
At a press conference Monday, Sen. Devlin Robinson, R-Allegheny, sponsor of SB416, said the bill is designed for a cashless society.
"Senate Bill 426 is a commonsense update that gives these organizations fundraising options without changing the safeguards already in place," he said.
Pennsylvania legalized a variety of small games -- raffles, punchbowl tickets, etc. -- run by licensed nonprofits as fundraisers in the 1980s.