By Chris Edwards
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IVANHOE – At its last city council meeting, the Ivanhoe City Council voted unanimously to put an item on the Nov. 5 general election ballot pertaining to charitable bingo gaming in the city limits.
Ivanhoe Mayor Skip Blackstone, who brought the issue to the attention of the council, gave an update; that the bingo vote will not appear on the ballot after all.
“I was attempting to put it on the ballot,” Blackstone said. “But the process is very convoluted and not as simple as originally thought. As a result, bingo will not be on the ballot.”
At the meeting, held Thursday, July 18, Blackstone said that many residents and visitors to the city “really miss the bingo” games, which were held by the Friends of Ivanhoe at the community center, which also houses Ivanhoe City Hall. “We are not legally able to conduct bingo anymore. It has to be voted on by the community,” Blackstone said.
Bingo gaming is one of the few forms of legalized gambling within the state, but state law only allows for certain organizations to conduct bingo gaming, and the proceeds can only be put toward charitable endeavors. According to the state’s Lottery Commission, which handles the application and licensing to conduct bingo games, they can only be conducted in areas of the state where local elections have taken place approving their use. Those elections can by countywide, or within a justice court precinct.
The Texas Lottery Commission allows for organizations to apply for licensing to hold more than 12 bingo occasions per year (a “Regular License”), as well as other tiers of licensing for bingo conductors.
Under state law, only licensed, authorized organizations can conduct bingo games, which include religious societies, nonprofits, fraternal organizations, veterans’ organizations, volunteer fire departments and volunteer emergency medical service providers.
Blackstone said the nature of the bingo games, as they had been conducted in the past was “like Catholic church bingo.”
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