Sec. 2.
(a)
Admissions to the riverboat shall be conducted in the following manner:
(1) Should a riverboat licensee or operating
agent choose not to observe flexible scheduling, the requirements are as
follows:
(A) The embarkation period for each
gaming excursion may not exceed a period of thirty (30) minutes.
(B) The disembarkation period for each gaming
excursion may not exceed a period of thirty (30) minutes. During the
disembarkation period, no new patrons shall be allowed to board the
riverboat.
(C) The riverboat
licensee or operating agent may allow patrons to disembark during the
embarkation period for the next gaming excursion or at any time that the
riverboat remains at the dock and gambling continues in accordance with IC
4-33-9-2
[IC 4-33-9-2 was repealed by
P.L.
268-2017,
SECTION
24, effective July 1, 2017.]. The
riverboat licensee or operating agent is responsible for ensuring it is in
compliance with subdivision (10) at all times. The admissions tax shall be paid
by the patron, the riverboat licensee, or the operating agent for any patron
who disembarks:
(i) during the embarkation
period for the next gaming excursion; or
(ii) at any time during a gaming excursion
after the conclusion of the thirty (30) minute disembarkation
period.
(D) The
admissions tax shall be paid by the carryover patron, the riverboat licensee,
or the operating agent for each excursion that a patron remains on
board.
(2) Should a
riverboat licensee or operating agent choose to observe flexible scheduling,
the:
(A) embarkation and disembarkation are
not limited to any period; and
(B)
patrons shall be allowed to board or exit at will.
(3) Whether or not a riverboat licensee or
operating agent chooses to observe flexible scheduling:
(A) all patrons boarding or exiting the
riverboat shall pass through an approved patron counting system; and
(B) the riverboat licensee or operating agent
is responsible for ensuring that the approved patron counting system keeps an
accurate count of the patrons who enter and exit the riverboat.
For purposes of this rule, "accurate count" means not less
than an average of ninety-seven percent (97%) accuracy.
(4) Should a riverboat licensee or
operating agent choose not to observe flexible scheduling, a patron count shall
be completed for each gambling excursion.
(5) Should a riverboat licensee or operating
agent choose to observe flexible scheduling, a patron count shall be completed
for the gaming day.
(6) Should a
riverboat licensee or operating agent choose to observe twenty-four (24) hour
gaming, a patron count shall be computed at the end of each gaming day and
shall include those patrons remaining on board the riverboat at the time of
each new gaming day. The following four (4) counts will be recorded at the
close of the gaming day:
(A) If applicable,
the actual admissions ticket count.
(B) The patron ingress count.
(C) The patron egress count.
(D) If applicable, the total onboard count.
At the close of the gaming day, boarding and exiting will be
momentarily suspended to allow for taking patron counts. The onboard count
shall be added to the new gaming day's ingress patron count. The recording,
resetting, and onboard additions to the ingress patron count shall be completed
in the presence of and observed by an enforcement agent. For admission tax
reporting for twenty-four (24) hour gaming, the count shall be adjusted to
account for and include the onboard count.
(7) The riverboat licensee or operating agent
shall submit a patron count plan to the executive director at least sixty (60)
days before the commencement of gambling operations. The riverboat licensee or
operating agent shall submit changes to its patron count plan to the executive
director at least thirty (30) days before any change goes into effect. The
patron count plan shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(A) A description of the primary system that
will be utilized to complete a patron count.
(B) The form that will be utilized to report
the patron count.
(C) The procedure
that will be utilized to ensure patron boarding occurs only during the
appropriate embarkation period should a riverboat licensee or operating agent
choose not to observe flexible scheduling.
(D) A description of the secondary system
referenced in subsection (c) that will be utilized to complete a patron count
in case the primary patron counting system malfunctions or fails.
(E) The manner in which the riverboat
licensee or operating agent will ensure that the total number of patrons does
not exceed the capacity of the riverboat as set forth in the:
(i) certificate of inspection issued by the
United States Coast Guard; or
(ii)
certificate of compliance issued by the commission under IC 4-33-6-6.
(F) Any other information deemed
necessary by the executive director or the commission to ensure compliance with
the Act and this title.
(8) The riverboat licensee or operating agent
shall notify the enforcement agent immediately if the primary patron counting
system malfunctions or fails.
(9)
The following individuals are entitled to a tax-free pass and do not have to
pass through the patron counting system when boarding the riverboat:
(A) Occupational licensees.
(B) Other employees of the riverboat licensee
or operating agent who are boarding the riverboat in the performance of
official duties.
(C) Commission:
(i) members;
(ii) staff; and
(iii) agents.
(D) Official guests approved by commission:
(i) members;
(ii) staff; and
(iii) agents.
(E) Vendors who have completed the
appropriate vendor log in accordance with section 4 of this rule.
(F) Any other person authorized by the
executive director or the commission to ensure compliance with the Act and this
title.
(10) All persons
boarding the riverboat on a tax-free pass shall have an appropriate
badge.
(11) At no time shall the
riverboat licensee or operating agent allow the total number of passengers to
exceed the capacity of the riverboat as set forth in the:
(A) certificate of inspection issued by the
United States Coast Guard; or
(B)
certificate of compliance issued by the commission under IC 4-33-6-6.
(b) Patron counting
systems shall tally the number of patrons passing through an identified point
of ingress and egress at a rate of not less than an average of ninety-seven
percent (97%) accuracy, as measured by standards established by an independent
lab designated by the executive director. If a riverboat licensee or operating
agent uses a patron counting system other than turnstiles, the riverboat
licensee or operating agent shall use its patron counting system at an
established clear point of entry beyond which underage patrons shall not
pass.
(c) Each riverboat licensee
or operating agent shall maintain a secondary system that is:
(1) subject to approval by the executive
director; and
(2) in the event of a
malfunction or failure of the primary system, promptly deployed to track patron
ingress and egress in a manner consistent with the requirements established in
IC 4-33.
The secondary system need not be the same system as the
primary system and need not be mechanical or electronic.
(d) All mechanical or electronic
patron counting systems used by a riverboat licensee or an operating agent
shall be approved by the executive director prior to implementation. The
riverboat licensee or operating agent shall provide the following information
to the executive director for purposes of approval:
(1) Documentation illustrating the riverboat
licensee's or operating agent's due diligence in establishing that the patron
counting system meets or exceeds a minimum average of ninety-seven percent
(97%) accuracy. This information shall include, but not be limited to, evidence
that the patron counting system:
(A) has been
subject to a field test, conducted by an independent lab designated by the
executive director, at the appropriate riverboat; and
(B) meets minimum accuracy standards during
peak and nonpeak hours.
(2) Information regarding the riverboat
licensee's or operating agent's patron counting system plan, including the
following:
(A) Security measures.
(B) Procedures for controlling ingress and
egress onto the riverboat property.
(C) Procedures for controlling riverboat
capacity.
(D) A description of the
secondary system required by subsection (c).
(3) Evidence demonstrating the riverboat
licensee's or operating agent's ability to continually verify the accuracy of
the patron counting system on an ongoing basis and documentation illustrating
the testing methodology is consistent with the standards established by an
independent lab as required by subsection (b).
(4) Any other information deemed necessary by
the commission to ensure compliance with the Act and this title.
(e) A riverboat licensee or
operating agent shall test or cause to be tested the patron counting system at
any time deemed necessary by the executive director to ensure proper
functionality or accuracy, but at least annually. The riverboat's patron
counting system testing methodology shall be consistent with standards
established by an independent lab as required by subsection (b).
(f) The executive director may require a
manufacturer or distributor of patron counting systems to submit the system to
an independent lab designated by the executive director, as outlined in
68 IAC 2-7-2. Unless otherwise
provided, all patron counting systems shall meet the requirements and
provisions outlined in
68 IAC 2-7.
