If more than 10 approved gaming machines are kept in a hotel, the hotelier must ensure that:(a) no more than 5 approved gaming machines are located in the general bar area of the hotel, and(b) the others (or all of them if none are located in the general bar area) are located in another area (a gaming room) that conforms to the requirements of the regulations.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
69 Possession etc of gaming machines that are not approved
(1) A person (including a hotelier or club) must not possess, supply, sell or install a gaming machine unless it is an approved gaming machine.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the possession of a gaming machine:(a) by a person who is the holder of a gaming-related licence, or(b) if the Authority has agreed to the making of an application under section 63 to have the gaming machine declared by the Authority to be an approved gaming machine and the possession is for the purposes of the application, or(b1) in accordance with the approval of the Authority under section 66 (1), or(c) in any case where the Authority terminates an investigation of, or refuses to approve, such an application—if the possession is for the purpose of disposing of the gaming machine in a manner directed by the Authority when notifying the applicant of the termination or refusal and does not extend beyond a reasonable time, or(d) in such other circumstances as may be prescribed by the regulations.
69A Sale etc of unapproved gaming machine components
(1) In this section:component means any component of a gaming machine.
relevant device, in relation to a component, means the gaming machine to which the component has been, or is intended to be, added.
(2) A person who is authorised by a gaming-related licence to sell approved gaming machines must not sell or supply a component to any person unless the relevant device is, with the addition of the component, declared by the Authority under section 64 as an approved gaming machine.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(3) The holder of a dealer’s licence or a technician must not install any component unless the relevant device is, with the addition of the component, declared by the Authority under section 64 as an approved gaming machine.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
70 Possession of approved gaming machine by unauthorised person
(1) A person who is in possession of an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence unless the person:(a) is the holder of a gaming-related licence, or(b) is a hotelier or club lawfully in possession of the approved gaming machine, or(c) has possession of the approved gaming machine in the ordinary course of a business involving the transportation or storage of goods, or(d) is an inspector exercising functions under this Act, or(e) is in lawful possession of the approved gaming machine as a consequence of its seizure under the authority of a search warrant under section 184.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
(2) This section does not apply to the possession of an approved gaming machine:(a) by a hotelier if the hotel licence has been cancelled under the Liquor Act 2007 and the possession has not extended beyond a reasonable time after the cancellation, or(b) by a club if:(i) the club has been disqualified from holding a licence under the Liquor Act 2007 and the period of disqualification has not expired, or(ii) the licence of the club has been cancelled under the Liquor Act 2007,and the possession has not extended beyond a reasonable time after the disqualification or cancellation.(3) This section does not apply to a person in possession of an approved gaming machine if:(a) the possession resulted from the exercise of a power conferred on the person by a mortgage and has not extended beyond 21 days after the exercise of the power, or(b) if the person obtained possession of the gaming machine by exercising a power or proprietary right under financial or other arrangements approved by the Authority and has not retained possession beyond 21 days after the exercise of the power.
71 Supply and purchase of gaming machines
(1) A person who supplies or offers to supply an approved gaming machine otherwise than by way of sale is guilty of an offence unless the supply or offer has been approved by the Authority and any conditions imposed by the Authority when giving the approval are complied with.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
(2) A person who purchases or offers to purchase an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence unless the gaming machine is purchased from, or the offer is made to, a person who is authorised by or under this Act to sell the gaming machine.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
(3) A person who supplies an approved gaming machine to a hotelier or club is guilty of an offence unless the keeping of the gaming machine by the hotelier or club would be lawful.Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
(4) A person who supplies, or offers to supply, an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence if possession of the gaming machine by the person to whom the gaming machine is supplied or offered is or would be unlawful.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(5) This section does not prohibit the supply of an approved gaming machine by:(a) a hotelier or club with the approval of the Authority if any conditions imposed by the Authority when approving the disposal of the gaming machine are complied with, or(b) a hotelier whose hotel licence has been cancelled (or who has been disqualified for a period from holding such a licence) if the supply is effected in accordance with arrangements approved by the Authority, or(c) a club whose licence under the Liquor Act 2007 has been cancelled (or which has been disqualified for a period from holding a club licence under that Act) if the supply is effected in accordance with arrangements approved by the Authority.
72 Restrictions on keeping or modification of gaming machines
(1) A hotelier or club must not keep or modify an approved gaming machine unless:(a) the property in the gaming machine passes to the hotelier or club unconditionally and free from encumbrances after being paid for in full by the hotelier or club without the hotelier or club having obtained financial accommodation in order to make the payment, or(b) the gaming machine is kept or modified in accordance with financial and other arrangements approved by the Authority,under a written contract that includes such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the regulations.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) Any change in the financial or other arrangements under which a hotelier or club keeps or modifies an approved gaming machine is void without the prior written consent of the Authority.
73 Sharing of receipts from gaming machines
(1) A hotelier or club must not:(a) share any receipts arising from the operation of an approved gaming machine, or(b) make any payment or part payment by way of commission or an allowance from or on any such receipts.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) This section does not apply in respect of the sharing of receipts arising from the operation of an approved gaming machine that is part of an authorised linked gaming system if the sharing of receipts is pursuant to an agreement, between the holder of the relevant links licence and the hotelier or club that operates the approved gaming machine, in relation to the linked gaming system.(3) A hotelier does not commit an offence under subsection (1) if any such receipts are shared with, or any such payment is made to, a person who:(a) has a financial interest in the business authorised by the hotel licence, and(b) is named in the statement referred to in section 41 of the Liquor Act 2007, or in the information provided to the Authority under section 55 of that Act, in relation to that licence.
74 Granting interests in gaming machines
(1) A hotelier or club must not grant any interest in an approved gaming machine to any other person.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) This section does not apply:(a) to an interest in an approved gaming machine that arises from an interest (such as a floating charge) granted over the whole of the hotelier’s or club’s assets (or over a portion of the hotelier’s or club’s assets) that includes, but does not specifically identify, the approved gaming machine, or(b) to an interest in an approved gaming machine that is granted in accordance with financial or other arrangements approved by the Authority.
75 Prohibition on gaming machines that provide cash or credit otherwise than as a prize
A hotelier or club is guilty of an offence if an approved gaming machine available for use in the hotel or on the premises of the club is capable of being operated to provide cash or credit otherwise than as a prize.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(1) A hotelier or club is guilty of an offence if an approved gaming machine available for use in the hotel or on the premises of the club fails to function in the manner in which it was designed and approved by the Authority to function.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence under subsection (1) if it is proved:(a) that the operation of the approved gaming machine was for testing or maintenance purposes, or(b) that the hotelier, or the secretary or other person for the time being in charge of the club:(i) had taken all reasonable precautions to ensure that the approved gaming machine was functioning properly, and(ii) at the time of the alleged offence did not know, and could not reasonably be expected to have known, that the machine was not functioning properly.
76A Causing defects in gaming machines
(1) A technician must not, in carrying out any work on an approved gaming machine, do anything that causes, or is likely to cause, the gaming machine to function in a manner other than the manner in which it was designed and approved by the Authority to function.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence under subsection (1) if it is proved:(a) that the operation of the approved gaming machine was for testing or maintenance purposes, or(b) that the technician:(i) took all reasonable precautions to ensure that the approved gaming machine was functioning properly, and(ii) at the time of the alleged offence did not know, and could not reasonably be expected to have known, that the machine was not functioning properly.
76B Hoteliers and clubs to record work done by technicians
(1) A hotelier or club must keep a written record containing the details of any work of the kind prescribed by the regulations that is carried out by a technician on any approved gaming machine kept in the hotel or on the premises of the club.Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
(2) The regulations may prescribe the details that are required to be recorded under subsection (1).
77 Protection of sensitive areas of gaming machines
(1) It is an offence for a person (other than an authorised person) to do any of the following:(a) break a seal securing a computer cabinet or gain access to anything within a computer cabinet,(b) affix a seal to a computer cabinet,(c) remove, replace or in any way affect or interfere with the operation of a computer cabinet or anything within a computer cabinet,(d) break a seal protecting the integrity of the game program of an approved gaming machine,(e) remove, or interfere with, any security device on an approved gaming machine,(f) remove, or interfere with, the housing protecting the meters of an approved gaming machine,(g) remove, disconnect or interfere with a meter of an approved gaming machine,(h) interfere with information received, stored or transmitted electronically by an approved gaming machine,(i) remove, or interfere with, any mark or seal affixed to an approved gaming machine to preserve the integrity of operation of the machine.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2) An authorised person must, if the person breaks any seal in doing anything referred to in subsection (1), replace the seal.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(2A) If an authorised person, in doing anything referred to in subsection (1), breaks any seal on or in relation to an approved gaming machine kept in a hotel or on the premises of a club, the hotelier or club must ensure that the seal is replaced by the authorised person in accordance with subsection (2).Maximum penalty: 10 penalty units.
(2B) The hotelier or club does not commit an offence under subsection (2A) if the authorised person has, before the gaming machine is operated for the purposes of gambling:(a) certified, in the form approved by the Director-General, that the seal has been replaced by the person, and(b) given a copy of the certificate to the hotelier or club.(2C) If a copy of any such certificate is given to the hotelier or club, the hotelier or club must:(a) keep the copy in the hotel or on the premises of the club, and(b) if requested to do so by an inspector, produce the copy for inspection by the inspector.Maximum penalty: 10 penalty units.
(2D) An authorised person must not make any statement in a certificate under subsection (2B) that the person knows is false or misleading.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(3) A person (including an authorised person) who removes, alters or otherwise interferes with the compliance plate on an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(4) Subsection (3) does not prevent a technician from doing any of the following things in relation to the compliance plate on an approved gaming machine (so long as the gaming machine is not operated at any time when the compliance plate is not attached to the machine):(a) moving the compliance plate to another part of the gaming machine,(b) removing the compliance plate if it is damaged, and replacing it with a new compliance plate,(c) destroying any such damaged compliance plate,(d) temporarily removing the compliance plate in order to enable work to be done to the facade of the gaming machine,(e) temporarily removing the compliance plate in order to update or correct the particulars shown on the plate.(5) A person who authorises or permits another person to act in a way that is an offence under subsection (1) or (3) is also guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
(6) In this section:authorised person means an inspector or a technician.
compliance plate has the same meaning as in section 121.
computer cabinet means the sealable part of an approved gaming machine that contains the game program storage medium and the random access memory.
78 Modification of gaming machines
(1) A person who modifies an approved gaming machine in such a way that it is in the form of a different approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence unless:(a) the person is a technician, and(b) the modification does not, as provided by section 64, prevent the gaming machine from being an approved gaming machine.(2) A technician who modifies an approved gaming machine in such a way that it is in the form of a different approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence unless, within 14 days of the modification, there is returned to the supplier of the materials for the conversion so much of the gaming machine as ceased to form part of it after its conversion and comprised:(a) a meter, circuit board, read-only memory device or artwork, or(b) a component prescribed as a restricted component.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
79 Consignment or movement of gaming machines
(1) The holder of a dealer’s licence or seller’s licence who consigns or moves an approved gaming machine:(a) to or from any place at which the licensee carries on the business authorised by the licence, or(b) from outside the State to a place within the State, or(c) to any place outside the State,must give the Authority (and, if the gaming machine is being consigned or moved to any place outside the State, the manufacturer of the gaming machine) a written notification stating the particulars required by this section no later than 7 clear days before the consignment or movement or within such other time as may be approved by the Authority.Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
(2) The required particulars are as follows:(a) the number and type of approved gaming machines,(b) the manufacturer’s serial number for each of the approved gaming machines,(c) the origin and destination of the approved gaming machines,(d) the intended dates of transportation,(e) the intended method of transport and the name of the carrier.(3) The Authority may, conditionally or unconditionally, grant an exemption from the operation of this section in a particular case or a particular class of cases.
80 Cheating and unlawful interference with gaming machines
(1) A person who:(a) has possession of a device made or adapted, or intended by the person to be used, for interfering with the normal operation of an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club, or(b) does anything calculated, or likely, to interfere with the normal operation of an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club, or(c) does anything calculated to render an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club incapable, even temporarily, of producing a winning combination,is guilty of an offence.(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to anything done in good faith in connection with:(a) the installation, alteration, adjustment, maintenance or repair of an approved gaming machine by a technician, or(b) the exercise by a person of a function conferred or imposed by this Act on an inspector.(3) A person who, with intent to dishonestly obtain money or a financial advantage for himself or herself or another person, inserts in an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club anything other than:(a) a coin or token of the denomination or type displayed on the gaming machine as that to be used to operate the gaming machine, or(b) a banknote of a denomination approved by the Authority for use in order to operate the gaming machine, or(c) a card of a type approved by the Authority for use in order to operate the gaming machine,is guilty of an offence.(4) A person who, in connection with an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club:(a) by any fraudulent representation, or(b) by a fraudulent scheme or practice, or(c) by the fraudulent use of the approved gaming machine or any other thing,obtains for himself or herself or another person, or induces a person to deliver, give or credit to him or her or another person, any money, benefit, advantage, valuable consideration or security, is guilty of an offence.(5) A person who, without lawful excuse, uses or has in his or her possession in a hotel or on the premises of a club any equipment, device or thing that permits or facilitates cheating or stealing in connection with an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence.(6) A person who knows of any faulty or fraudulent computer programming and as a result gains, or gains for another person, an advantage in the operation of an approved gaming machine is guilty of an offence.(7) A person who authorises or permits another person to act in a way that is an offence under another provision of this section is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
A person who claims a prize from the playing of an approved gaming machine in a hotel or on the premises of a club knowing that the claim is false or misleading in a material respect is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
81 Illegal advantage gained during design etc of gaming machines
(1) A person who, during the design, manufacture, assembly, maintenance or repair of an approved gaming machine, does anything to fraudulently gain an advantage (whether or not for another person) in the operation of the gaming machine is guilty of an offence.(2) (Repealed)(3) A person who does anything to an approved gaming machine in order to conceal anything that is an offence under subsection (1) is guilty of an offence.(4) A person who authorises or permits another person to act in a way that is an offence under another provision of this section is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.