Yelling 'bingo!' could win you $500 in Pennsylvania

Update, Dec. 28

A bill to update state bingo laws was signed into law, according to a news release.

Rep. Kate Klunk (R-Hanover) sponsored the bill.

“Act 66 of 2017 provides much-needed updates to the state’s antiquated Bingo Law, which was enacted in 1981,” Klunk said in the release. “My bill frees bingo and affords nonprofit organizations better opportunities to attract more players.”

Update, Dec. 14

Legislation to update Pennsylvania's Bingo Law — which would increase prize amounts — passed the Pennsylvania Senate on Wednesday, Dec. 13, according to a news release.

Rep. Kate Klunk (R-Hanover) sponsored House Bill 411 in part to increase prize limits, which means "increased revenue, which equals more funding for charitable endeavors."

The bill now goes to Gov. Tom Wolf for approval. If Wolf signs off, changes would include:

• The ability to advertise bingo games and the cash value of prizes on the internet and social media;
• Increases in prize limits to $500 for one game of bingo, $4,000 for jackpot games and $8,000 for the total amount awarded in a calendar day;
• No restrictions on the number of days a licensed association can hold bingo games;
• Pre-draw bingo;
• An allowance for guest callers and for new members of an organization to assist with bingo;
• and volunteer fire companies created by a merger would be immediately eligible for a bingo license.

Original report

Yelling 'bingo!' in Pennsylvania could win you $500 if a proposed bill becomes law.

Legislation to increase the dollar value of bingo prizes, sponsored by State Rep. Kate Klunk (R-Hanover), was approved by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Tuesday. Klunk's House Bill 411 will now go before the Pennsylvania Senate for consideration, according to a May 9 news release.

If passed, the bill would update the 1981 law to increase prize limits from $250 to $500 for a single game of bingo, from $2,000 to $4,000 for jackpot games and from $4,000 to $8,000 for total amount of prizes awarded in a calendar day, the release states.

“A lot has changed since the bingo law was enacted, especially the value of the dollar,” Klunk said in the release. “Increasing cash prizes will help these valuable community organizations attract new players.”

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Klunk hopes that increasing bingo prize limits will attract more players and help civic organisations that use the game to raise revenue for communities and charitable causes. She sees the changes as just common sense, she said Thursday.

The expanded prize limits would be nice, but one Franklin County fire official was more excited by the idea that the new law would remove restrictions on advertising the exact value of cash prizes. As it stands, the law restricts community organizations from advertising the dollar value of cash prizes. Klunk’s bill would remove that, the release states.

Ron Royer, treasurer for the Fayetteville Volunteer Fire Department, has had to get creative in how to advertise the prizes for the department's bingo games over the years, he said Thursday.

Instead of saying there will be a $1,000 prize, the department advertises '1,000 ways to win,' Royer said.

Giving people specific details about cash prizes would probably draw in more players, he said.

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Royer has worked bingo nights at the department most Fridays for the past eight to 10 years, he said. The department relies on bingo and other small games of chance to bring in revenue and offset operation costs, he said.

The monetary facets of the bingo bill could help, but the biggest need the department really has is for volunteer help at fundraising games.

Klunk is working on that issue, too. While the law says volunteers must have belonged to organizations for at least a year, Klunk's bill allows for guest callers and new members of a licensed association to assist in the operation of bingo.

"These are stalwarts in our community," Klunk said of Pennsylvania organizations that raise money through bingo. "We need to be supporting them to make our communities better."

Klunk’s bill would also remove restrictions on the number of days a licensed association may conduct bingo games, permit pre-draw bingo and allow organizations to advertise on the internet and through social media. The legislation also includes a provision that would allow a volunteer fire company created from the merger of two or more companies to be immediately eligible for a bingo license, the release states.