CalNonprofits (calnonprofits.org) is asking for your help in stopping a bad raffle bill by signing on to our letter of opposition here.
California currently authorizes most charities to conduct 90/10 raffles (where 90% is paid to the cause and 10% to the winner). In 2015, a bill was passed allowing a limited set of nonprofit organizations — ones affiliated with major league sports teams — to hold 50/50 raffles.
Now there’s a new bill, SB 741, that would create yet another narrow carve-out. It would expand the use of 50/50 raffles, but only if they are conducted at a county or state fairgrounds by a state fair, a citrus association or a district agricultural association.
There is no good argument for allowing this defined set of venues to hold raffles according to different rules from other nonprofits. What’s more, the state has not allocated sufficient resources to adequately monitor the large-scale 50/50 raffles that are now being operated by the professional sports teams. It is not clear how SB 741 could ensure additional resources to protect nonprofits and the public, nor how such raffles would feasibly work. That’s why CalNonprofits is opposed to the unfair and piecemeal approach of SB 741.
A hearing on SB 741 will be held on June 13th in the Senate Governmental Organization Committee, chaired by Senator Bill Dodd. We need to show him and the committee that nonprofits oppose this unfair bill. By adding your name to our opposition letter, you can join the growing number of California nonprofits that oppose this bill.
Because the hearing is just a few weeks away, we need to hear back from you by Monday, June 5th. If you share our concerns and wish to add your organization’s name, please go here (http://bit.ly/StopBadRaffleBill) to sign on and be a vocal part of the effort to stop SB 741.
I hope we can count on your help. Feel free to contact me directly at NancyB@CalNonprofits.org if you have any questions. And please be on the lookout for a survey we are conducting about nonprofits and raffles, coming soon.