Game Room Regulations
Gambling & Gaming
County and city regulation of game rooms and coin-operated amusement machines (eight-liners), including permits, location restrictions, hours of operation, and inspection rules.
How Game Room Regulations Rules Differ by Place
Fort Worth, TX: Fort Worth Bans All Game Rooms Citywide
Heavy RestrictionsFort Worth bans game rooms outright, city-wide. Section 23-22, adopted in October 2024, makes it a criminal offense to operate any game room, defined as a place where amusement…
Texas City, TX: Texas City Amusement Redemption Game Room Rules
Heavy RestrictionsIn Texas City, Texas, an amusement redemption machine game room needs an annual license from the Chief of Police at $1,000, plus a $100 annual permit for each machine. Section 118.026…
Waco, TX: Waco Bans Game Rooms and Amusement Machines
Heavy RestrictionsWaco outright bans game rooms: Section 13-72 makes it a crime to operate a game room anywhere in the city, in any zoning district, and to keep an amusement redemption machine or…
Austin, TX: Austin Game Rooms Must Post Signs, Allow Police Access
Some RestrictionsAustin doesn't license game rooms, but Chapter 4-13 imposes strict operating rules on any facility open to the public with coin-operated amusement redemption machines: transparent…
Killeen, TX: Killeen Coin-Operated Game Machine Tax: $7.50
Some RestrictionsKilleen requires anyone who owns, exhibits, or operates a coin-operated amusement machine, including eight-liner-style 'skill or pleasure' games, to pay an annual $7.50 occupation tax…
Pearland, TX: Pearland Game Room and Eight-Liner Window Rules
Some RestrictionsPearland treats any arcade or game room with more than four coin-operated amusement machines or eight-liners as a regulated 'gaming establishment' under City Code Article V. Owners…
Game Room Regulations Rules by State
Statewide law governs this topic in many states. Each entry links to that state's full page.
Cities & Counties with Game Room Regulations Rules
17 locations
Other Gambling & Gaming Topics
Card Room Licensing
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Charitable Bingo and Raffles
Bingo, raffles, and games of chance run by charities, including states like New York where the games are lawful only in municipalities that have locally adopted the state licensing…
Social Gambling Rules
Whether private, social card games are exempt from gambling prohibitions, a carve-out defined in state law, plus any local rules layered on top of it.
Casino Zoning Districts
Zoning for casinos and gaming floors where they exist, gaming-enterprise districts, casino overlay districts, and the land-use rules governing where gaming may operate.
Sports Betting Law
Who governs sports wagering, a state-licensed activity everywhere it is legal, so the rules live in state statute and gaming-commission regulations rather than city code.