These proposed poker regulations are overly burdensome, overly broad and overly restrictive to charities who are just out to raise funds for their non profit organization.

11VAC 20-30-10 Definition of Immediate Family is way too broad including sibling, grandparent, grandchild, mother or father in law or stepchild. This will negatively affect the non-profit's ability to successfully raise funds through poker bc it limits so many people from playing. The regs should be helping and not hindering people from attending tournaments. Also every one of these relations listed could easily be from another state or city and have nothing to do with poker except wanting to play and support the charity.

11VAC20-30-60 Requirements for administering, conducting managing or operating a poker tournament.  N….. from playing in a poker tournament the operator administers for the administrator.”

This item is overly restrictive and will only prohibit charities from getting players.

11VAC20-30-90 Operation of poker tournaments; administration of poker tournaments. D. The qualified organization shall ensure an operator's directors, officers, owners, partners, tournament managers, dealers, employees, independent contractors, volunteers, agents, or the immediate family members or persons residing in the household of an operator's directors, officers, owners, partners, tournament managers, dealers, employees, independent contractors, volunteers, or agents do not participate as a player or otherwise play in the poker tournament for which the operator is contracted to administer.

This regulation is overly broad and hurts the charities instead of helping. First of all, immediate family is entirely too broad and covers people possibly not even associated with the operator. This regulation should be stricken or only prohibit those living in the same household as the operator’s owners/partners.

11VAC20-30-60 Requirements for administering, conducting managing or operating a poker tournament. P. A qualified organization shall only pay a fixed fee to an operator for services. No qualified organization shall pay a gross aggregate compensation to the operator based on a percentage of the revenue the qualified organization collects for that tournament. No other fees, charges or assessments shall be paid by the qualified organization to an operator for administering a poker tournament except such fixed fee.

This regulation will only hurt the charities. Because of the fluctuations in players and revenue for tournaments, it is difficult to tell how much money will be made. A flat fee for operators can easily hurt charities. Operators should be paid a portion of the revenue.

11VAC20-30-80 Poker tournaments. 6. The tournament has a fixed and predetermined end time in accordance with this section.

This regulation just doesn’t make sense. Poker is played until the last man is left. The players go back and forth, they win and they lose.  This regulation changes the way poker is played. It is wrong and should be stricken. There should be no requirement of an end time. Once again, it's clear those that created these regulations are merely trying to hurt the charities and/or they have no clue as to how these tournaments are run.