HB455: HB455 Bingo; properties used for games; limit number of sessions; provisions

Georgia law regulates charity bingo games run by nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations, covering where games can be held, how many sessions are allowed, and how much money can be paid out or paid to workers. House Bill 455 updates several of these rules. It lets a nonprofit's bingo license list multiple locations instead of just one, and it loosens the rule on leased property so a nonprofit can use leased space it regularly uses for other purposes, not just space used exclusively for bingo. The bill raises the number of bingo sessions a licensee can run in a single day from one to three, as long as each session runs five hours or less, while keeping the overall limit of 31 sessions per month at a single premises. It doubles the weekly prize cap from $3,000 to $6,000 in cash or gifts. It also changes how helpers are paid, moving from a $30 per day limit to a $150 per session limit for people assisting in running the games.

• Allows a bingo license to list multiple locations where games can be conducted, instead of restricting it to one single location.
• Loosens the property ownership rule so nonprofits can use leased property they regularly use for other purposes, not only property used solely for bingo.
• Raises the daily session limit from one bingo session per day to three, provided each session lasts five hours or less.
• Doubles the weekly prize limit from $3,000 to $6,000 in cash or gifts of equivalent value.
• Increases the pay cap for people who help run bingo games from $30 per day to $150 per session.

Nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations that hold bingo licenses in Georgia, the people who volunteer or work to help run bingo sessions for pay, and bingo players who could see larger prizes and more frequent sessions at the same locations.

Nonprofits running bingo could hold more sessions per day, use leased property more flexibly, offer bigger prizes, and pay helpers more per session, potentially increasing how often and how much charity bingo operates across Georgia while keeping a monthly cap on sessions per location.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 16-12-53 to require license applications to list all locations where bingo will be conducted, not just one.
• Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 16-12-57 to let nonprofits use leased property they regularly use for other purposes, or property leased from another nonprofit, for bingo games.
• Section 3 amends O.C.G.A. § 16-12-60 to allow up to three bingo sessions per day (each five hours or less) instead of one, while keeping the 31-sessions-per-month limit per premises.
• Section 3 raises the weekly prize cap from $3,000 to $6,000 in cash or gifts of equivalent value.
• Section 3 raises the pay limit for people assisting in bingo games from $30 per day to $150 per session, including for people who assist multiple organizations.

1. 2026-05-12Effective Date 2026-07-01
2. 2026-05-12Act 714
3. 2026-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-02-20Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-02-20Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2026-01-29Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
8. 2026-01-12Senate Recommitted (Senate)

• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)Primary sponsor
• Lauren McDonald (R, HD-026)
• Matt Dubnik (R, HD-029)
• Kasey Carpenter (R, HD-004)
• Mark Newton (R, HD-127)
• Rick Jasperse (R, HD-011)
• Matt Brass (R, SD-006)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 4, 2025

   149 yea, 15 nay (9 not voting, 7 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #186

2. PassedSenate voteFebruary 20, 2026

   38 yea, 8 nay (4 not voting, 4 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #560

• bingo games
• nonprofit fundraising
• gambling regulation
• charity gaming law