(a) An applicant for a license shall submit an application on a form, in such manner, and in accordance with such requirements as may be prescribed by rule of the council.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 4-49-117

  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Council: means the sports wagering council. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Interactive sports wagering: means placing a wager on a sporting event via the internet, a mobile device, or other telecommunications platform. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • Key personnel: means individuals who have the power to exercise significant influence over sports wagering in this state and who are associated with the applicant for licensure or registration as:
    (i) A principal owner of more than five percent (5%) of the applicant. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • License: means a license to accept wagers from bettors on sporting events issued under §. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • Licensee: means a person who holds a license issued under §. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • Month: means a calendar month. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Person: means an individual, group of individuals, trust, or business entity. See Tennessee Code 4-49-102
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) An application for a license must include the following:

(1) The identification of the applicant’s key personnel;
(2) A national criminal background check for each person identified under subdivision (b)(1) conducted by the Tennessee bureau of investigation or another appropriate law enforcement agency. A set of fingerprints must be supplied upon request and in the manner requested by the investigating agency;
(3) Information, documentation, and assurances, as prescribed by rule of the council, that may be required to establish by clear and convincing evidence the good character, honesty, and integrity of the applicant and its key personnel;
(4) Notice and a description of all civil judgments obtained against the applicant or its key personnel;
(5) [Deleted by 2023 amendment.]
(6) A list of all jurisdictions where the applicant and its key personnel have conducted gaming or sports wagering operations;
(7) Information, documentation, and assurances concerning financial background and resources as may be required to establish by clear and convincing evidence the financial stability, integrity, and responsibility of the applicant, including, but not limited to, bank references, business and personal income and disbursement schedules, tax returns and other reports filed with governmental agencies, and business and personal accounting and check records and ledgers. Each applicant shall, in writing, authorize the examination of all bank accounts and records as may be deemed necessary by the council. The council may consider any relevant evidence of financial stability. The applicant is presumed to be financially stable if the applicant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that it meets each of the following standards:

(A) The ability to assure the financial integrity of sports wagering operations by the maintenance of a bankroll or equivalent provisions adequate to pay winning wagers to bettors when due. An applicant is presumed to have met this standard if the applicant maintains, on a daily basis, a bankroll and equivalent provisions, in an amount which is at least equal to the average daily minimum bankroll or equivalent provisions, calculated on a monthly basis, for the corresponding month in the previous year;
(B) The ability to meet ongoing operating expenses which are essential to the maintenance of continuous and stable sports wagering operations;
(C) The ability to pay, as and when due, all state and federal taxes; and
(D) If an applicant has not previously been engaged in business operations prior to applying for licensure, the applicant shall submit documents that establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that the applicant has made sufficient arrangements to fund its proposed sports wagering operations;
(8) Information, documentation, and assurances as may be required to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the applicant has sufficient business ability and gaming experience as to establish the likelihood of the creation and maintenance of a successful, efficient sports wagering operations;
(9) Information, as required by rule of the council, regarding the financial standing of the applicant, including, without limitation, each person or entity that has provided loans or financing to the applicant;
(10) A nonrefundable application fee in the amount of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), and an initial license fee to process the application and for the first year of licensure, if the application is approved, of seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000). Upon approval of the application, the application fee of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) must be applied to the initial license fee of seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000);
(11)

(A) Except as provided in subdivision (11)(B), for the second or subsequent year of licensure:

(i) Prior to June 30, 2025, for licensees receiving one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) or more in gross wagers in the immediately preceding twelve-month period, a license fee of seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000); and
(ii) Prior to June 30, 2025, for licensees receiving less than one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) in gross wagers in the immediately preceding twelve-month period, a license fee of three hundred seventy-five thousand dollars ($375,000); and
(B) The council shall promulgate rules effective July 1, 2025, to set license fees sufficient to defray the operating and administrative expenses incurred in administering and enforcing this chapter. The council shall adjust the fee structure by rule no more often than biennially; and
(12) Any additional information required by the council by rule.
(c) Upon review of the application, the council shall approve or deny an application for a license not more than ninety (90) days after receipt of an application.
(d) A license issued by the council authorizes the licensee to offer interactive sports wagering in this state.
(e) A licensee may renew its license by submitting an application on a form, in such manner, and in accordance with such requirements as may be prescribed by rule of the council. A licensee shall submit the nonrefundable annual license and application fees prescribed under subdivision (b)(10) with its application for the renewal of its license.
(f) For each application for licensure or renewal of a license that is approved under this section, the amount of the application fee must be credited toward the licensee’s annual license fee and the licensee shall remit the balance of the annual fee to the council upon approval of a license. The fees collected from licensees under this section must be used by the council to pay the actual operating and administrative expenses incurred under this part. Ten percent (10%) of all remaining fees must not be distributed in accordance with subsection (g), but must remain available for use by the council for the purposes set forth herein and must carry forward into each subsequent fiscal year.
(g) Except as provided in subsection (f), licensing and application fees collected by the council must be distributed to the state treasurer for deposit into the Tennessee Promise scholarship endowment fund created under § 49-4-708(d).
(h) Each person holding a license under this part has a continuing duty to immediately inform the council of any change in status relating to any information that may disqualify the person from holding the license.
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