Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi of Utica today issued the following statement regarding his sponsorship and other efforts supporting A.6095, The Charitable Gaming Act of 2017, which would modernize existing laws for charities selling raffle tickets in New York:
“Over the past several years, I have heard from a number of charities here in the Mohawk Valley depending on contributions to provide funding for the valuable programs and services they offer to community residents. Their ability to raise the money they need for these services is significantly hindered by antiquated regulations governing charitable fund-raisers. I am sponsoring this legislation because these laws have long needed to be updated.
“It is time to allow charities to conduct raffles on the Internet, or by permitting the use of debit or credit card payments for tickets. Many people simply do not have the time to drive to the charity’s offices or to another location to pay for tickets by cash or check. Changing these laws will allow the charities community members support to increase raffle ticket sales, and increase the amount of programs they can offer in our communities, and that is why I am pushing for this bill’s passage.”