Section 10: Minimum capital investment for category 1 license; penalty for failure to timely begin gaming operations; determination of date for opening for business; licensing and renewal fees; continuing assessment of capitalization of licensee
Section 10. (a) The commission shall set the minimum capital investment for a category 1 license; provided, however, that a gaming licensee shall make a capital investment of not less than $500,000,000 into the gaming establishment which shall include, but not be limited to, a gaming area, at least 1 hotel and other amenities as proposed in the application for a category 1 license; and provided further, that the commission shall determine whether it will include the purchase or lease price of the land where the gaming establishment will be located or any infrastructure designed to support the site including, but not limited to, drainage, utility support, roadways, interchanges, fill and soil or groundwater or surface water contamination issues, whether or not the applicant is an eligible owner or operator under chapter 21E and has suitable capital to finance its operations and the proposed capital investment. Upon award of a gaming license by the commission, the applicant shall be required to deposit 10 per cent of the total investment proposed in the application into an interest-bearing account. Monies received from the applicant shall be held in escrow until the final stage of construction, as detailed in the timeline of construction submitted with the licensee's application and approved by the commission, at which time the deposit shall be returned to the applicant to be applied for the final stage. Should the applicant be unable to complete the gaming establishment, the deposit shall be forfeited to the commonwealth. In place of a cash deposit, the commission may allow for an applicant to secure a deposit bond insuring that 10 per cent of the proposed capital investment shall be forfeited to the commonwealth if the applicant is unable to complete the gaming establishment.
(b) A licensee who fails to begin gaming operations within 1 year after the date specified in its construction timeline, as approved by the commission, shall be subject to suspension or revocation of the gaming license by the commission and may, after being found by the commission after a hearing to have acted in bad faith in its application, be assessed a fine of up to $50,000,000.
(c) An applicant for a category 1 license shall submit its proposed capital investment with its application to the commission which shall include stages of construction of the gaming establishment and the deadline by which the stages and overall construction and any infrastructure improvements will be completed. In awarding a category 1 license, the commission shall determine at what stage of construction a licensee shall be approved to open for business; provided, however, that a licensee shall not be approved to open for business until the commission has determined that at least the gaming area and other ancillary entertainment services and non-gaming amenities, as required by the commission, have been built and are of a superior quality as set forth in the conditions of licensure; and provided further, that total infrastructure improvements onsite and around the vicinity of the gaming establishment, including projects to account for traffic mitigation as determined by the commission, shall be completed before the gaming establishment shall be approved for opening by the commission. The commission shall not approve a gaming establishment to open for business before the completion of the permanent gaming area.
(d) The commission shall determine the minimum licensing fee for each region, which shall not be less than $85,000,000, to be paid by a category 1 licensee within 30 days after the award of the license. The license shall set forth the conditions to be satisfied by the licensee before the gaming establishment shall be opened to the public. The commission shall set any renewal fee for such license based on the cost of fees associated with the evaluation of a category 1 licensee under this chapter which shall be deposited into the Gaming Revenue Fund. Such renewal fee shall be exclusive of any subsequent licensing fees under this section.
(e) The commission shall determine the sources and total amount of an applicant's proposed capitalization to develop, construct, maintain and operate a proposed gaming establishment under this chapter. Upon award of a gaming license, the commission shall continue to assess the capitalization of a licensee for the duration of construction of the proposed gaming establishment and the term of the license.