Florida Charitable Bingo Law Caps Prizes and Proceeds

Section 849.0931 is Florida's carve-out from the general gambling ban for bingo, and it is self-executing: an organization qualifies by meeting the statute's own conditions, not by filing for a state gaming license. Eligible groups are "charitable, nonprofit, or veterans' organizations" engaged in charitable, civic, community, benevolent, religious, or scholastic work, and each must have "been in existence and active for a period of 3 years or more" before it can run a game. In exchange, "the entire proceeds derived from the conduct of such games, less actual business expenses for articles designed for and essential to the operation," must go to the organization's charitable endeavors, the money cannot be diverted to anything else.

Prize sizes are capped by statute, not by house choice: a jackpot "shall not exceed the value of $250," with no more than three jackpots in a single session, and "all other game prizes shall not exceed $50." Regular bingo is limited to two days a week per organization, though instant bingo (pull-tab tickets opened to reveal a preset winning pattern) is carved out of that day count. Every worker, caller, card seller, floor help, must be an unpaid, bona fide member of the sponsoring organization living in the county or within 15 miles of where the game is held; the statute bars paying anyone "in any way for operation of such game." No one under 18 may play or work a game. A hall can be leased for bingo only under a lease of at least one year that does not pay the landlord a cut of the proceeds and does not exceed the local market rent, a guard against a for-profit operator fronting as the "landlord." Distributors of instant-bingo stock must keep invoices for three years.

A separate statute, § 849.0935, covers raffles and other drawings-by-chance run by 501(c)(3)/(4)/(7)/(8)/(10)/(19) nonprofits; it governs disclosure and anti-fraud rules for raffles rather than bingo's prize and frequency caps, so it is not the operative provision for a bingo-specific question.

Willfully and knowingly violating any part of § 849.0931, running an unqualified game, exceeding the jackpot or frequency caps, paying a worker, or diverting proceeds, is a first-degree misdemeanor under §§ 775.082/775.083 (up to one year in jail, up to a $1,000 fine). A second or subsequent violation escalates to a third-degree felony under §§ 775.082/775.083/775.084 (up to five years). Because no license is ever issued, there is no permit to suspend or revoke; enforcement runs entirely through criminal prosecution.