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Can I offer contests that involve both skill and chance in Montana? What are the requirements?

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Offering Contests in Montana

Montana law allows for promotional games of chance that involve both skill and chance. However, such contests must comply with certain requirements.

According to MTAR 23.16.3501, a bona fide promotional game of chance must involve a scheme, device, or enterprise for the disposal or distribution of property among persons who have not paid or are not expected to pay any valuable consideration or who have not purchased or are not expected to purchase any goods or services for a chance to obtain the property, a portion of it, or a share in it, and which is not manufactured or intended for purposes of gambling. Valuable consideration means a payment or promise of payment of anything of value, a token, object or article exchangeable for money or property, credit or promise directly or indirectly or contemplating transfer of money or property or interest therein, deposits or any other thing of pecuniary value as a condition of entering a promotional game of chance, or winning a prize from the game.

Requirements for Promotional Games of Chance

To offer a promotional game of chance in Montana, the following requirements must be met:

  • The game must be sponsored by a nonprofit organization, a college, a university, a public school district, or a nonpublic school [1.1].
  • The sponsor is responsible for compliance with Montana statutes and regulations, including ARM 23.16.2602, as well as all other applicable state and federal statutes and regulations [1.1].
  • Credit gambling is prohibited, and sales may not be made by credit card [1.1].
  • The drawing must occur and the winner must be identified on the date advertised to the public and established in the sponsor’s rules [1.1].
  • Proceeds from the raffle must be divided between the winner and the sponsor and may not include a percentage of ticket sales for administrative expenses or other fees payable to any third party [1.1].
  • The game must be conducted in a manner that does not allow the winner to be unfairly predetermined or the game to be manipulated or rigged [2.1].
  • The person or business conducting the promotion shall not arbitrarily remove, disqualify, disallow or reject any entry or fail to award prizes offered or print, publish or circulate literature or advertising material used in connection with such promotional game of chance that is false, deceptive or misleading [2.1].

Conclusion

In summary, Montana law allows for promotional games of chance that involve both skill and chance, but they must comply with certain requirements. The sponsor must be a nonprofit organization, a college, a university, a public school district, or a nonpublic school. The game must be conducted in a manner that does not allow the winner to be unfairly predetermined or the game to be manipulated or rigged. The person or business conducting the promotion shall not arbitrarily remove, disqualify, disallow or reject any entry or fail to award prizes offered or print, publish or circulate literature or advertising material used in connection with such promotional game of chance that is false, deceptive or misleading.

Please note that contests involving any listed species or species of concern are prohibited except for Yellowstone cutthroat trout or westslope cutthroat trout stocked in lakes or reservoirs, and all contests involving wild trout in streams or rivers are prohibited [3.1]. Additionally, if the contest involves fishing, the sponsor must submit an application to the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks and provide documentation that they have approval to use each fishing access site not under the ownership or control of the department that is listed in the application [3.2]. The sponsor must also report to the department information on the success of contest participants within 30 days after the contest [3.3]. Finally, if the contest is a raffle, the sponsor must comply with additional requirements outlined in MTAR 23.16.2602, including making all raffle terms available to the public prior to the sale of any raffle tickets and maintaining records of the total proceeds collected, a detailed description of the prize(s) awarded, a description of the selection process used to determine the winner(s), and a detailed record of the distribution of the charitable raffle proceeds [1.2].

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Source(s):
Jurisdiction

Montana