HB 163: "An Act creating the FAFSA raffle fund; relating to the definition of 'gambling'; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 163 01 "An Act creating the FAFSA raffle fund; relating to the definition of 'gambling'; and 02 providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 11.66.280(3) is amended to read: 05 (3) "gambling" means that a person stakes or risks something of value 06 upon the outcome of a contest of chance or a future contingent event not under the 07 person's control or influence, upon an agreement or understanding that that person or 08 someone else will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome; 09 "gambling" does not include 10 (A) bona fide business transactions valid under the law of 11 contracts for the purchase or sale at a future date of securities or commodities 12 and agreements to compensate for loss caused by the happening of chance, 13 including contracts of indemnity or guaranty and life, health, or accident 14 insurance;
01 (B) playing an amusement device that 02 (i) confers only an immediate right of replay not 03 exchangeable for something of value other than the privilege of 04 immediate replay and does not contain a method or device by which the 05 privilege of immediate replay may be cancelled or revoked; 06 (ii) confers only tickets, credits, allowances, tokens, or 07 anything of value that can be redeemed for toys, candy, or electronic 08 novelties offered at the same facility where the amusement device is 09 located; or 10 (iii) allows a player to manipulate a claw machine or 11 similar device within an enclosure and enables a person to receive 12 merchandise directly from the machine; 13 (C) an activity authorized by the Department of Revenue under 14 AS 05.15; [OR] 15 (D) the permanent fund dividend raffle authorized under 16 AS 43.23.230; or 17 (E) the FAFSA raffle authorized under AS 37.14.850; 18 * Sec. 2. AS 37.14 is amended by adding a new section to read: 19 Article 11. FAFSA Raffle Fund. 20 Sec. 37.14.850. FAFSA raffle fund; drawing. (a) The FAFSA raffle fund is 21 established as an account in the general fund. The commissioner shall manage the 22 fund. Interest received on money in the fund shall be separately accounted for and 23 shall be appropriated to the fund. The fund consists of money appropriated to the fund 24 by the legislature. The commissioner shall use the fund, without further appropriation, 25 to pay for prizes awarded by the FAFSA raffle. 26 (b) A student may enter the FAFSA raffle by providing to the commissioner 27 proof, in the form or format required by the commissioner, that the student has 28 completed and submitted to the United States Department of Education a FAFSA in 29 the manner set out in the FAFSA. A student entering the raffle during a FAFSA filing 30 period is entitled to one entry into each monthly raffle held during the remaining 31 months of the filing period and one entry into the annual raffle that occurs at the end
01 of that filing period. A student who has completed and submitted a FAFSA in a 02 previous FAFSA filing period may not enter the FAFSA raffle. 03 (c) At the beginning of each month that follows a month within the FAFSA 04 filing period, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall conduct a public 05 drawing to award a monthly prize of $1,000 from the fund. A student may not win 06 more than one monthly prize. 07 (d) At the beginning of the month that follows the end of a FAFSA filing 08 period, the commissioner or commissioner's designee shall conduct a public drawing 09 to award five annual prizes of $10,000 each from the fund. A student who has won a 10 monthly prize is eligible for the annual raffle. 11 (e) If the amount appropriated to the fund in a fiscal year is insufficient to pay 12 the amount of the prizes authorized under (c) and (d) of this section, the commissioner 13 shall reduce pro rata the prizes. 14 (f) The commissioner shall advertise the FAFSA raffle. 15 (g) Nothing in this section creates a dedicated fund. 16 (h) In this section, 17 (1) "commissioner" means the commissioner of education and early 18 development; 19 (2) "FAFSA" means the Free Application for Federal Student Aid as 20 defined in 34 C.F.R. 668.2(b); 21 (3) "FAFSA filing period" means the months in an academic year in 22 which the United States Department of Education makes the FAFSA available to be 23 completed and submitted by a student to the United States Department of Education; 24 (4) "fund" means the FAFSA raffle fund. 25 * Sec. 3. This Act takes effect October 1, 2023.