Florida Gov Signs Family Amusement Games Act Ending Uncertainty For Operators

Gov. Rick Scott

The new law offers welcome relief to Florida's amusement machine operators who were facing ambiguity under a previous law (HB155) in 2013. The earlier law unintentionally associated amusement devices and family entertainment centers with gambling establishments known as Internet cafés.

While the new law clarifies the differences between gambling and skill-based games likes cranes and prize merchandisers, it also places some restrictions on the manner in which they are operated and the value of prizes they offer. It bans, for instance, games similar to those found in a casino, along with symbols applied to those games, like blackjack, dice and other imagery suggestive of a game in which the player does not control the outcome.

Also prohibited is the use of computer-based random number generation and other non-discernible factors known or predictable by the player. And the games themselves cannot be designed or adapted to allow manipulation by the operator to prevent a player from winning or to predetermine which player will win.

The law creates three game classifications in Florida. Type A games allow only replays as an award. Type B games are ticket redemption games, which provide something that can be redeemed for a prize. Type C games feature a player-controlled mechanism that can directly dispense prizes. The law limits prize values associated with Type B games to $5.25 per play; the maximum cumulative value of all prizes at a single redemption location is $525 a day. With Type C games, the prize value ceiling goes up to $52.50 -- 10 times as much as Type B prizes.

Similar to previous state laws regulating the industry, the new measure defines an "arcade amusement center" as a place of business having at least 50 amusement games or machines on premises, which is operated as a bona fide amusement facility. The law does not restrict where Type A games can operate. Type B and Type C games can be operated in hotels and time-share spaces, restaurants, taverns, amusement arcades, bowling centers and truck stops.

Click here to access a complete copy of the new law.