Montana Dept Of Justice Gambling Control Division

23-5-112. Definitions. Unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions apply to parts 1 through 8 of this chapter:

(1) 'Antique gambling device' means:

Montana Department Of Justice Gambling Control, al igual que en una mesa de blackjack, footloose slots, hoe een slot vervangen zonder sleutel Posted on August 11, 2020 by admin 97.10%. Please contact the Gambling Control Division or visit the State of Montana Dept. Of Justice, Gambling Control Division website to get the most up to date FAQ Sports Board sheet, office locations and phone numbers. The main Helena number is 406-444-1971. FWP’s online license applications will be unavailable from Friday, May 31, beginning at 9 p.m., until Saturday, June 1, at 6 a.m., due to a related service interruption with the Montana Department of Justice.

(a) an illegal gambling device manufactured prior to 1994; or

(b) any gambling device which, at any present time, is 30 years old or older.

(2) 'Applicant' means a person who has applied for a license or permit issued by the department pursuant to parts 1 through 8 of this chapter.

(3) 'Application' means a written request for a license or permit issued by the department. The department shall adopt rules describing the forms and information required for issuance of a license.

(4) 'Associated gambling business' means a person who provides a service or product to a licensed gambling business and who:

(a) has a reason to possess or maintain control over gambling devices;

(b) has access to proprietary information or gambling tax information; or

(c) is a party in processing gambling transactions.

(5) 'Authorized equipment' means, with respect to live keno or bingo, equipment that may be inspected by the department and that randomly selects the numbers.

(6) 'Bingo' means a gambling activity played for prizes with a card bearing a printed design of 5 columns. The letters B-I-N-G-O must appear above the design, with each letter above one of the columns. More than 75 numbers may not be used. One or more numbers may appear in each square, except for the center square, which may be considered a free play. Numbers must be randomly drawn using authorized equipment until the game is won by the person or persons who first cover one or more previously designated arrangements of numbers on the bingo card.

(7) 'Bingo caller' means a person 18 years of age or older who, using authorized equipment, announces the order of the numbers drawn in live bingo.

(8) 'Bingo session' means all activities incidental to a series of bingo games conducted by a licensed operator beginning when the first bingo ball is drawn in the first game of bingo.

(9) 'Card game table' or 'table' means a live card game table:

(a) authorized by permit and made available to the public on the premises of a licensed gambling operator; or

(b) operated by a senior citizen center.

(10) 'Card game tournament' means a gambling activity for which a permit has been issued involving participants who pay valuable consideration for the opportunity to compete against each other in a series of live card games conducted over a designated period of time.

(11) 'Dealer' means a person with a dealer's license issued under part 3 of this chapter.

(12) 'Department' means the department of justice.

(13) 'Distributor' means a person who:

(a) purchases or obtains from a licensed manufacturer, distributor, route operator, or operator equipment of any kind for use in gambling activities; and

(b) sells the equipment to a licensed manufacturer, distributor, route operator, or operator.

(14) (a) 'Gambling' or 'gambling activity' means risking any money, credit, deposit, check, property, or other thing of value for a gain that is contingent in whole or in part upon lot, chance, or the operation of a gambling device or gambling enterprise.

(b) The term does not mean conducting or participating in:

(i) promotional games of chance;

(ii) amusement games regulated by Title 23, chapter 6, part 1; or

(iii) social card games of bridge, cribbage, hearts, pinochle, pitch, rummy, solo, and whist played solely for prizes of minimal value, as defined by department rule.

(15) 'Gambling device' means a mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic device, machine, slot machine, instrument, apparatus, contrivance, scheme, or system used or intended for use in any gambling activity.

(16) 'Gambling enterprise' means an activity, scheme, or agreement or an attempted activity, scheme, or agreement to provide gambling or a gambling device to the public.

(17) (a) 'Gift enterprise' means a gambling activity in which persons have qualified to obtain property to be awarded by purchasing or agreeing to purchase goods or services.

(b) The term does not mean:

(i) a cash or merchandise attendance prize or premium that county fair commissioners of agricultural fairs and rodeo associations may give away at public drawings at fairs and rodeos;

(ii) a promotional game of chance;

(iii) an amusement game regulated under Title 23, chapter 6;

(iv) a savings promotion raffle offered by a bank, trust company, mutual savings bank, savings and loan association, or credit union authorized to do business and accept deposits in this state under state or federal law and conducted in compliance with 23-5-413 that entitles individual members or depositors equal chances to win a designated prize by depositing a sum of money during a specified savings period; or

(v) an entry into a raffle as a result of paying membership dues or making a purchase of an item offered during a fundraising event held by a nonprofit organization.

(18) 'Gross proceeds' means gross revenue received less prizes paid out.

(19) 'Heads or tails' means a gambling activity in which players attempt to predict the outcome of a coin toss. Those who are incorrect are eliminated and those who are correct continue to another round until one winning player remains and is awarded a prize.

(20) 'House player' means a person participating in a card game who has a financial relationship with the operator, card room contractor, or dealer or who has received money or chips from the operator, card room contractor, or dealer to participate in a card game.

(21) 'Illegal gambling device' means a gambling device not specifically authorized by statute or by the rules of the department. The term includes:

(a) a ticket or card, by whatever name known, containing concealed numbers or symbols that may match numbers or symbols designated in advance as prize winners, including a pull tab, punchboard, push card, tip board, pickle ticket, break-open, or jar game, except for one used under Title 23, chapter 7, under part 5 of this chapter, in a bingo game approved by the department under part 4 of this chapter, or in a promotional game of chance approved by the department; and

(b) an apparatus, implement, or device, by whatever name known, specifically designed to be used in conducting an illegal gambling enterprise, including a faro box, faro layout, roulette wheel, roulette table, craps table, or slot machine, except as provided in 23-5-153.

(22) 'Illegal gambling enterprise' means a gambling enterprise that violates or is not specifically authorized by a statute or a rule of the department. The term includes:

(a) a card game, by whatever name known, involving any bank or fund from which a participant may win money or other consideration and that receives money or other consideration lost by the participant and includes the card games of blackjack, twenty-one, jacks or better, baccarat, or chemin de fer;

(b) a dice game, by whatever name known, in which a participant wagers on the outcome of the roll of one or more dice, including craps, hazard, or chuck-a-luck, but not including activities authorized by 23-5-160;

(c) credit gambling; and

(d) internet gambling.

(23) (a) 'Internet gambling', by whatever name known, includes but is not limited to the conduct of any legal or illegal gambling enterprise through the use of communications technology that allows a person using money, paper checks, electronic checks, electronic transfers of money, credit cards, debit cards, or any other instrumentality to transmit to a computer information to assist in the placing of a bet or wager and corresponding information related to the display of the game, game outcomes, or other similar information.

(b) The term does not include the operation of a simulcast facility or advance deposit wagering with a licensed advance deposit wagering hub operator allowed by Title 23, chapter 4, the state lottery provided for in Title 23, chapter 7, or a raffle authorized under Title 23, chapter 5, part 4, that is sponsored by a nonprofit organization and that is registered with the department. If all aspects of the gaming are conducted on Indian lands in conformity with federal statutes and with administrative regulations of the national Indian gaming commission, the term does not include class II gaming or class III gaming as defined by 25 U.S.C. 2703.

(24) 'Keno' means a game of chance in which prizes are awarded using a card with 8 horizontal rows and 10 columns on which a player may pick up to 10 numbers. A keno caller, using authorized equipment, shall select at random at least 20 numbers out of numbers between 1 and 80, inclusive.

(25) 'Keno caller' means a person 18 years of age or older who, using authorized equipment, announces the order of the numbers drawn in live keno.

(26) 'License' means a license for an operator, dealer, card room contractor, manufacturer of devices not legal in Montana, sports tab game seller, manufacturer of electronic live bingo or keno equipment, other manufacturer, distributor, or route operator that is issued to a person by the department.

(27) 'Licensee' means a person who has received a license from the department.

(28) 'Live card game' or 'card game' means a card game that is played in public between persons on the premises of a licensed gambling operator or in a senior citizen center.

(29) (a) 'Lottery' means a scheme, by whatever name known, for the disposal or distribution of property among persons who have paid or promised to pay valuable consideration for the chance of obtaining the property or a portion of it or for a share or interest in the property upon an agreement, understanding, or expectation that it is to be distributed or disposed of by lot or chance.

(b) The term does not mean lotteries authorized under Title 23, chapter 7.

(30) 'Manufacturer' means a person who:

(a) assembles from raw materials or subparts a completed piece of equipment or pieces of equipment of any kind to be used as a gambling device and who sells the equipment directly to a licensed distributor, route operator, or operator;

(b) possesses gambling devices or components of gambling devices for the purpose of testing them; or

(c) purchases gambling devices or components from licensed manufacturers, distributors, route operators, or operators as trade-ins or to refurbish, rebuild, or repair to sell to licensed manufacturers, distributors, route operators, or operators.

(31) 'Nonprofit organization' means an organization established as a nonprofit to support charitable, religious, scholastic, educational, veterans', fraternal, beneficial, civic, senior citizens', or service organizations' charitable activities, scholarships or educational grants, or community service projects.

(32) 'Operator' means a person who purchases, receives, or acquires, by lease or otherwise, and operates or controls for use in public a gambling device or gambling enterprise authorized under parts 1 through 8 of this chapter.

(33) 'Permit' means approval from the department to make available for public play a gambling device or gambling enterprise approved by the department pursuant to parts 1 through 8 of this chapter.

(34) 'Person' or 'persons' means both natural and artificial persons and all partnerships, corporations, associations, clubs, fraternal orders, and societies, including religious and charitable organizations.

(35) 'Premises' means the physical building or property within or upon which a licensed gambling activity occurs, as stated on an operator's license application and approved by the department.

(36) 'Promotional game of chance' means a scheme, by whatever name known, for the disposal or distribution of property among persons who have not paid or are not expected to pay any valuable consideration or who have not purchased or are not expected to purchase any goods or services for a chance to obtain the property, a portion of it, or a share in it. The property is disposed of or distributed by simulating a gambling enterprise authorized by parts 1 through 8 of this chapter or by operating a device or enterprise approved by the department that was manufactured or intended for use for purposes other than gambling.

(37) 'Public gambling' means gambling conducted in:

(a) a place, building, or conveyance to which the public has access or may be permitted to have access;

(b) a place of public resort, including but not limited to a facility owned, managed, or operated by a partnership, corporation, association, club, fraternal order, or society, including a religious or charitable organization; or

(c) a place, building, or conveyance to which the public does not have access if players are publicly solicited or the gambling activity is conducted in a predominantly commercial manner.

(38) 'Raffle' means a form of lottery in which each participant pays valuable consideration for a ticket to become eligible to win a prize. Winners must be determined by a random selection process approved by department rule.

(39) 'Route operator' means a person who:

(a) purchases from a licensed manufacturer, route operator, or distributor equipment of any kind for use in a gambling activity;

(b) leases the equipment to a licensed operator for use by the public; and

(c) may sell to a licensed operator equipment that had previously been authorized to be operated on a premises and may sell gambling equipment to a distributor or manufacturer.

(40) 'Senior citizen center' means a facility operated by a nonprofit or governmental organization that provides services to senior citizens in the form of daytime or evening educational or recreational activities and does not provide living accommodations to senior citizens. Services qualifying under this definition must be recognized in the state plan on aging adopted by the department of public health and human services.

(41) (a) 'Slot machine' means a mechanical, electrical, electronic, or other gambling device, contrivance, or machine that, upon insertion of a coin, currency, token, credit card, or similar object or upon payment of any valuable consideration, is available to play or operate, the play or operation of which, whether by reason of the skill of the operator or application of the element of chance, or both, may deliver or entitle the person playing or operating the gambling device to receive cash, premiums, merchandise, tokens, or anything of value, whether the payoff is made automatically from the machine or in any other manner.

(b) This definition does not apply to video gambling machines authorized under part 6 of this chapter.

(42) 'Video gambling machine' is a gambling device specifically authorized by part 6 of this chapter and the rules of the department.

Poker seems like a great cultural fit for the state of Montana, and online poker perhaps even more so. Poker is an individual game that pits person against person, and each player ultimately rises or falls on the strength of their own work and effort.

While live poker is available in several places across the state, online poker appeals to a greater amount of Montanans thanks to the fact that it can be played virtually anywhere. How to play it, what Montana law says about poker played online and where gambling sits in the larger picture of the state are all topics we’ll cover in this Guide to Montana Online Poker.

There’s a trifecta of qualities that poker players from Montana should look for when choosing an online poker room: Legal, soft and stable. Legal refers to the site holding a proper operating license. Soft refers to the weakness of a typical opponent. Stable refers to the general reputation of the site and the quality of their software. Based primarily on those three concerns, here are our top Montana online poker sites:

Is Online Poker Legal in Montana?

If you’re from Montana you should find few obstacles in your path to playing real-money poker online. In addition to our top picks for Montana poker players above, a wide roster of US-friendly poker sites in Montana. Creating and funding your account should take no more than five minutes, and you’ll be ready to hit the tables right after.

What Does the Law Say About Gambling & Poker in Montana?

How do Montana law and online poker intersect? This page is not a substitute for qualified legal advice, but we can provide you with a short list of some of the critical parts of Montana law regarding gambling.

The Montana Constitution forbids every form of gambling, unless a form is specifically approved by the state or by voters.

Montana Dept Of Justice Gambling Control Division Online

That brings us to the definition of “gambling” under Montana law. Section 23-5-112 defines gambling as “risking any money, credit, deposit, check, property, or other thing of value for a gain that is contingent in whole or in part upon lot, chance, or the operation of a gambling device or gambling enterprise.”

We are then led to the definition of “gambling device,” which contains references that could be seen as applicable to online gambling:

“a mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic device, machine, slot machine, instrument, apparatus, contrivance, scheme, or system used or intended for use in any gambling activity” (Section 23-5-112(13)).

Montana law does specifically identify “internet gambling” as a form of gambling that can qualify as an “illegal gambling enterprise” (Section 23-5-112(19)).

It’s also against the law in Montana to “advertise for or solicit” participation in illegal gambling (Section 23-5-154). Obviously that phrase could cover a very wide range of potential activity.

For additional information, refer to the official online version of the Montana code . While we do update our pages regularly, the law can change swiftly and you should rely only on the official version of state code for information about the current law.

Will Montana Regulate Online Poker?

Montana will probably not be among the first tier of US states to regulate online poker, but we also can’t see the state holding out very long once a few other states are on board. In that way, Montana’s fate on the issue of regulated online poker is essentially out of the state’s hands; if federal regulation progresses, we would expect Montana to opt-in rather quickly, but if the process ends up being state-by-state, it could be some time before Montana gets into the game.

Montana Gambling Facts

Gambling itself almost certainly traces back to the earliest days of the state, but the Montana government didn’t get into the gambling game until 1889. That’s when the new constitution for Montana proclaimed each and every type of gambling illegal. Best we can tell, that did little to dampen enthusiasm among gamblers, and the activity persisted underground in the decades that followed.

Montana diverged from the majority of states in the US by wading into regulated gambling very early on (relative to the rest of the nation). Licensed gambling introduced by law in 1937 sparked a small boom in the state, one that was quelled by a 1950 state Supreme Court decision ruling all forms of gambling once again illegal. That stood until the 1970s, when a wave of bills and public votes shifted the law of the land back in favor of regulated gambling.

Regulated Gambling Options in Montana

Virtually all of the major types of regulated gambling are available in Montana. While no commercial casinos of the traditional sort operate in the state, casino-style gambling is still readily available at tribal facilities (Class II and Class III). Montana also operates a state lottery and permits pari-mutuel wagering on racing events.

Right now the state of Montana does not license or regulate online poker sites, online casino games or any other form of online gambling. That doesn’t suggest all forms are illegal, only that you’re not able (for example) to play poker online at a Montana-regulated site.

All Poker and Gambling Laws by State

• Now that the 2014 gaming statistics have been tabulate, it’s clear that video gambling revenues continue to decline in the state of Montana. The numbers declined by 0.2 from 2013 to 2014, according to the Montana Justice Department’s Gambling Control Division. While that might not sound like a major decline,

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Montana Gambling Resources

Montana Department of Justice. The Gambling Control Division of the Montana Department of Justice oversees all regulated gambling in the state. Their official website offers definitive answers regarding the law, regulation and other aspects of Montana’s regulated gambling industry.

Montana Dept Of Justice Gambling Control Division License

Montana Council on Problem Gambling The MCPG provides workshops, literature and other resources for dealing with problem gambling.

Montana Gaming Group. A non-profit corporation that serves as a trade group for a spectrum of business interests related to regulated gambling. You’ll find Montana gambling news, research and links to additional resources at the Montana Gaming Group website.

Montana’s Famous Poker Players

Big Sky Country has produced far more than its fair share of famous poker players. While the total population of Montana isn’t that impressive, the state’s roster of well-known poker pros certainly is. You’ve got Huck Seed, main event winner, multiple WSOP bracelet holder, prop bet legend and the champion of NBC’s heads up tournament. There’s also Annie Duke, former lead pro for Ultimate Bet Poker and sister of Howard Lederer, who called Montana home during the 90s. Todd Brunson, poker player and son of legend Doyle Brunson, spends his days in the state and hosts an annual poker tournamentat the Marina City Lodge.

Montana Dept Of Justice Gambling Control Division Phone Number

Sources & Citations For This Article on Montana Online Poker