§24. Rulemaking authority; fees and fines, collection

A. The board, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act and R.S. 27:15(B)(8), shall promulgate all rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this Title, including but not limited to the following:

(l) The issuance of any license, contract, or permit authorized by this Title or other law providing for gaming operations and activities subject to regulation of the board.

(2) The methods of and forms and procedures for making an application for a license, contract, or permit to be considered by the board.

(3) The methods of and forms for providing to the board information concerning a person's family, habits, character, associates, criminal record, business activities, and financial affairs.

(4) Enforcement of this Title, gaming laws administered by the board, and rules of the board, including imposition and collection of fines, penalties, and other sanctions which may be imposed by the board against a casino operator or any other licensee or permittee of the board.

(5) A procedure requiring the withholding of payments of progressive slot machine annuities and cash gaming winnings of persons who have outstanding child support arrearages or owing child support overpayments, prior to the payment of a progressive slot machine annuity, beginning with the second annuity payment, or cash gaming winnings. Progressive slot machine annuities or cash gaming winnings shall only include payments for which the entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, is required to file form W2-G, or a substantially equivalent form, with the United States Internal Revenue Service.

(a) The board may require that the agency reporting current child support arrearages or overpayments to provide information relating to such arrearages or overpayments in a manner, format, or record approved by the board that gives the entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, real-time or immediate electronic database access to the information. If the information relating to such arrearages or overpayments by the agency reporting current child support arrearages or overpayments is not available through real-time or immediate electronic database access, the licensee shall not be responsible for withholding cash gaming winnings in accordance with the provisions of this Subparagraph.

(b) The board or any entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, including any of its officers, employees, attorneys, accountants, or other agents, shall not be civilly or criminally liable to any person, including any customer, for any disclosure of information made in accordance with this Section, for encumbering or surrendering assets in response to information provided by the Department of Children and Family Services, or for any claims for damages arising from withholding or failing to withhold any progressive slot machine annuities or cash gaming winnings, based upon information provided to it.

(c) If any entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, determines that the winner of a progressive slot machine annuity or cash gaming winnings is a person who has outstanding child support arrearages or owes child support overpayments, the entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, shall deduct the child support arrearage or child support overpayment from the payment of the progressive slot machine annuity or cash gaming winnings. The deducted amount shall be forwarded to the Department of Children and Family Services within seven days and the entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, shall pay the remainder to the person who has outstanding child support arrearages or owes child support overpayments. If the remainder is equal to or less than zero, the person who has an outstanding child support arrearage or child support overpayment shall not receive a payment.

(d) Any entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5 or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, may deduct an administrative fee from each payment of a progressive slot machine annuity, beginning with the second annuity payment, or cash gaming winnings, of persons who have outstanding child support arrearages or owe child support overpayments per singular or periodic payment, not to exceed thirty-five dollars.

(e) The board shall also require that the entity licensed or permitted under Chapters 1, 4, 5, or 7 of Title 27 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, adopt procedures designed to prevent employees from willfully failing to withhold payments of progressive slot machine annuities or cash gaming winnings from persons who have outstanding child support arrearages or child support overpayments, based upon the information provided by the Department of Children and Family Services that allows the licensee to identify such persons.

(f) Not later than January 1, 2011, the board shall institute rulemaking procedures as necessary to implement the provisions of this Paragraph.

(6) The administration and enforcement of accumulating unclaimed monies on which the time period for collection has expired, the remittance thereof to the state treasurer, and related matters as required by R.S. 27:94, 252, and 394.

B.(1) Subject to the provisions of Article VII, Section 2.1 of the Constitution of Louisiana, and in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, the board may assess and provide for the imposition and collection of such fees as may be necessary to defray administrative costs associated with the application for and the investigation, granting, or renewal of licenses and permits or the casino operating contract.

(2) Any fine or other monetary penalty collected by the board or its staff shall be remitted to state treasury for deposit into the state general fund.

C. Upon direction of the board, the office of state police and the attorney general shall submit proposed rules to the board for consideration, modification, and promulgation as provided in this Section.

D. The board shall not adopt rules and regulations pertaining to campaign finance and contributions which are more restrictive than the provisions of law found generally in Chapter 11 of Title 18 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, and specifically in R.S. 18:1505.2(L).

E. The board shall not adopt any rule which would provide an alternative means of satisfying the provisions of R.S. 27:65(B)(1)(a) or (2) which would prohibit the conducting of gaming upon a riverboat while it is docked and defines the duration of riverboat cruises. The adoption of a rule which would allow phantom or simulated cruises, or any similar activity, is specifically prohibited.

Acts 1996, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 7, §1, eff. May 1, 1996; Acts 1997, No. 657, §1; Acts 1999, No. 1387, §1, eff. July 1, 1999; Acts 2010, No. 425, §1, eff. June 22, 2010; Acts 2010, No. 877, §3, eff. July 1, 2010; Acts 2015, No. 186, §2.