Virginia Law

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"ACH" means Automated Clearing House, which is a network that connects all banking and financial institutions within the United States.

"Adjusted gross revenue" means gross revenue minus:

1. All cash or the cash value of merchandise paid out as winnings to players, and the value of all bonuses or promotions provided to players as an incentive to place or as a result of their having placed wagers,

2. Uncollectible gaming receivables, which shall not exceed 2.0% or a different percentage as otherwise determined by the board pursuant to subsection F of § 58.1-4007 of the Code of Virginia, of gross revenue minus all cash paid out as winnings to players;

3. If the permit holder is a significant infrastructure limited licensee, as defined in § 59.1-365 of the Code of Virginia, any funds paid into the horsemen's purse account pursuant to the provisions of subdivision 14 of § 59.1-369 of the Code of Virginia; and

4. All excise taxes on sports betting paid pursuant to federal law.

"Administrative Process Act" means Chapter 40 (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia.

"Affiliate" means a person that directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries owns, controls, is controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with the other person.

"Affiliated marketer" means a person that is involved in promoting, marketing, and directing business to online gaming sites and has an agreement with a permit holder to be compensated based on the number of registrations, the number of depositing registrations, or a percentage of adjusted gross receipts.

"AML" means anti-money laundering.

"Annual permit application period" means the period occurring annually when the department will accept sports betting permit applications.

"Applicant" means a person who applies for a sports betting permit, license, or registration.

"Application" means the forms, information, and documents submitted electronically to the Virginia Lottery to seek a permit, license, or registration.

"Board" means the Virginia Lottery Board established by the Virginia Lottery Law.

"Canceled wager" means a wager that has been canceled due to an event or circumstance that prevents the wager's completion.

"Cheating" means behavior that includes improving the chances of winning or of altering the outcome of a wager, sports betting platform, or sporting event by (i) deception, interference, or manipulation; (ii) use of inside or nonpublic information; or (iii) through use of any equipment, including software pertaining to or used in relation to the equipment used for or in connection with a wager, sports betting platform, or the sporting event on which wagers are placed or are invited. "Cheating" includes attempts and conspiracy to cheat and colluding with other bettors.

"College sports" means an athletic event (i) in which at least one participant is a team from a public or private institution of higher education, regardless of where such institution is located and (ii) that does not include a team from a Virginia public or private institution of higher education.

"Covered persons" means athletes; umpires, referees, and officials; personnel associated with clubs, teams, leagues, and athletic associations; medical professionals and athletic trainers who provide services to athletes; and the immediate family members and associates of such persons.

"Date of final action on a denial" means:

1. If, after the director sends written notice of permit, license, or registration denial or recommendation of denial, an applicant fails to timely request a reconsideration meeting, the date of the director's written notice;

2. If, after a reconsideration meeting, an applicant fails to timely request a board hearing, the date of the director's written notice after the reconsideration meeting; or

3. If the board holds a hearing on an appeal of the director's permit, license, or registration denial or reconsideration of such a denial, the date of the board's written decision.

"Date of final action on a sanction" means:

1. If, after the director sends a deficiency notice under the Virginia Lottery's regulations, a permit holder, licensee, or registrant fails to submit a timely, acceptable corrective action plan, the date the board adopts as final the director's deficiency notice; or

2. If the board holds a hearing on the director's recommendation to impose a sanction, the date of the board's written decision.

"Department" or "Virginia Lottery" means the Virginia Lottery Department, the independent department that pursuant to § 58.1-4031 of the Code of Virginia is responsible for the operation of the Commonwealth's sports betting program set forth in Articles 1 (§ 58.1-4000 et seq.) and 2 (§ 58.1-4030 et seq.) of Chapter 40 of Title 58.1 of the Code of Virginia.

"Director" means the Executive Director of the Virginia Lottery or the director's designee.

"Global risk management" means management, consultation, instruction, or transmission of information relating to sports betting by a permit holder or sports betting platform supplier that also holds a license to conduct sports betting in another permissible jurisdiction. The term includes the management of risks associated with sports betting involving a sporting event for which a wager may be accepted; the setting or changing of bets or wagers; cutoff times for bets or wagers; acceptance or rejection of bets or wagers; pooling or laying off of bets or wagers, lines, point spreads, odds, or other activity relating to betting or wagering.

"Gross revenue" means the total of all cash, property, or any other form of remuneration, whether collected or not, received by a permit holder from its sports betting operations.

"Individual" means a human being and not a corporation, company, partnership, association, trust, or other entity.

"Initial permit application period" means the period during which initial sports betting permit applications may be submitted to the department. The initial application period begins October 15, 2020, and ends October 31, 2020, at 11:59:59 p.m.

"Integrity monitoring system" means a system of policies and procedures approved by the board through which a permit holder receives and sends reports from other permit holders to assist in identifying unusual or suspicious wagering activity.

"Internal control standards" mean the internal procedures, administration, and accounting controls designed by the permit holder to conduct sports betting operations.

"License" means the authority granted by the director to a person to perform the functions and responsibilities of a principal, sports betting supplier, or sports betting employee.

"Licensee" means a person that holds a license, including a temporary license.

"Minor" means an individual who is younger than 21 years of age.

"Mobile application" means any interactive platform for use through the internet, a mobile device, or a computer that has been approved by the Virginia Lottery Board for operation of sports betting by a permit holder.

"Multi-source authentication" means a strong procedure that requires more than one method to verify a player's identity through a combination of two or more independent credentials, such as information known only to the player, for example, a password, pattern, or answers to challenge questions, and a player's personal biometric data, such as fingerprints, facial recognition, or voice recognition, to the extent the verification method does not violate any privacy laws.

"Permissible jurisdiction" means any jurisdiction in which global risk management or the betting or wagering on a sporting event is lawful or not otherwise expressly prohibited under the laws of that jurisdiction.

"Permit" or "sports betting permit" means written authorization given by the director following an application and investigation process that allows a person to legally operate a sports betting platform in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

"Permit holder" means a person that has been issued a permit by the director to operate a sports betting platform.

"Person" means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency or instrumentality thereof.

"Personal biometric data" means any information about an individual that is derived from that individual's DNA, heart rate, blood pressure, perspiration rate, internal or external body temperature, hormone levels, glucose levels, hydration levels, vitamin levels, bone density, muscle density, or sleep patterns, or other information as may be prescribed by the board by regulation.

"Player" or "sports bettor" means an individual physically located in the Commonwealth of Virginia who participates in sports betting.

"Principal" means an individual who, solely or together with the individual's immediate family members, (i) owns or controls, directly or indirectly, 5.0% or more of the pecuniary interest in any entity that is a permit holder or (ii) has the power to vote or cause the vote of 5.0% or more of the voting securities or other ownership interests of such entity. "Principal" includes an individual who is employed in a managerial capacity for a sports betting platform on behalf of a permit holder, and, for purposes of this definition, "employed in a managerial capacity" means the chief executive officer of the permit holder; if applicable, its sports betting platform supplier; and any individual who has ultimate responsibility for the operation of the sports betting platform in Virginia.

"Professional sports" means an athletic event involving at least two human competitors who receive compensation in excess of their expenses for participating in such event. "Professional sports" does not include charitable gaming, as defined in § 18.2-340.16 of the Code of Virginia; fantasy contests, as defined in § 59.1-556 of the Code of Virginia; or horse racing, as defined in § 59.1-365 of the Code of Virginia.

"Prohibited conduct" means any statement, action, or other communication intended to influence, manipulate, or control a betting outcome of a sports event or of any individual occurrence or performance in a sports event in exchange for financial gain or to avoid financial or physical harm. "Prohibited conduct" includes statements, actions, and communications made to a covered person by a third party. "Prohibited conduct" includes cheating. "Prohibited conduct" does not include statements, actions, or communications made or sanctioned by a sports team or sports governing body.

"Prohibited individual" means any individual (i) who is prohibited from wagering pursuant to the sports betting law; (ii) whose name is on any self-exclusion list or the Virginia Lottery Exclusion List; (iii) whose participation may undermine the integrity of the wagering or the sporting event; (iv) who is excluded from wagering for any other good cause; or (v) who makes or attempts to make a wager as an agent or proxy on behalf of another for compensation (i.e., messenger betting).

"Prohibited wager" means an attempted wager on any sporting event or occurrence that is not explicitly permitted (i) under the sports betting law or (ii) by board action, whether by regulation or according to any list of permissible wagers published and updated by the department from time to time. "Prohibited wager" includes wagers on youth sports, proposition bets on college sports, and bets on Virginia college sports. For youth sports and Virginia college sports, "prohibited wagers" are limited to the single game or match in which a youth sports or Virginia college sports team is a participant and shall not be construed to prohibit wagering on other games in a tournament or multi-game events in which a youth sport or Virginia college sports team participates, so long as such other games do not have a participant that is a youth sports or Virginia college sports team.

"Proposition wager" or "proposition bet" means a wager on a single specific action, statistic, occurrence, or nonoccurrence to be determined during a sporting event and includes any such action, statistic, occurrence, or nonoccurrence that does not directly affect the final outcome of the sporting event to which it relates.

"Registrant" means a person that has received a registration approval from the director.

"Registration" means the authority granted by the director to a person to perform the functions and responsibilities of a sports betting vendor.

"Sports betting" means placing wagers on professional sports, college sports, sporting events, and any portion thereof and includes placing wagers related to the individual performance statistics of athletes in such sports and events. "Sports betting" includes any system or method of wagering approved by the director, including single-game bets, teaser bets, parlays, over-under, moneyline, pools, exchange wagering, in-game wagering, in-play bets, proposition bets, and straight bets. "Sports betting" does not include (i) participating in charitable gaming authorized by Article 1.1:1 (§ 18.2-340.15 et seq.) of Chapter 8 of Title 18.2 of the Code of Virginia; (ii) participating in any lottery game authorized under Article 1 (§ 58.1-4000 et seq.) of Chapter 40 of Title 58.1 of the Code of Virginia; (iii) wagering on horse racing authorized by Chapter 29 (§ 59.1-364 et seq.) of Title 59.1 of the Code of Virginia; (iv) participating in fantasy contests authorized by Chapter 51 (§ 59.1-556 et seq.) of Title 59.1 of the Code of Virginia; (v) placing a wager on a college sports event in which a Virginia public or private institution of higher education is a participant; or (vi) placing a wager on sports events organized by the International Olympic Committee.

"Sports betting account" or "player account" means an account established by a permit holder for an individual to use for sports betting with a specific identifiable record of deposits, wagers, and withdrawals established by a sports bettor and managed by the permit holder.

"Sports betting employee" means an individual who does not meet the definition of a principal and works within the borders of the Commonwealth of Virginia for a permit holder, sports betting supplier, or vendor on nonmanagement support services, such as software or hardware maintenance or the provision of products, services, information, or assets, directly or indirectly, to the permit holder.

"Sports betting law" means Article 2 (§ 58.1-4030 et seq.) of Chapter 40 of Title 58.1 of the Code of Virginia.

"Sports betting operation" means the legal provision of sports betting to individuals though a sports betting platform in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

"Sports betting platform" means a website, application, or other platform accessible via the internet or mobile, wireless, or similar communications technology that sports bettors may use to participate in sports betting.

"Sports betting supplier" or "supplier" means a person that (i) manages, administers, or controls wagers initiated, received, or made on a sports betting platform; (ii) manages, administers, or controls the games on which wagers are initiated, received, or made on a sports betting platform; or (iii) maintains or operates the software or hardware of a sports betting platform, including geolocation services, customer integration, and customer account management.

"Sports event" or "sporting event" means professional sports, college sports, and any athletic event, motor race event, electronic sports event, or competitive video game event.

"Sports governing body" means an organization headquartered in the United States that prescribes rules and enforces codes of conduct with respect to a professional sports or college sports event and the participants therein. "Sports governing body" includes a designee of the sports governing body.

"Submit" means to deliver a document or electronic information (i) in a manner that ensures its receipt by the party to whom it is addressed and (ii) that is considered complete only upon actual receipt by that party.

"Suspicious wagering activity" means unusual wagering activity that cannot be explained; that is in violation of the sports betting law or this chapter; that is made or attempted to be made by an agent or proxy for compensation (i.e., messenger betting); or that is or may be indicative of match-fixing, the manipulation of an event, misuse of inside information, sports corruption, or other prohibited activity.

"Unusual wagering activity" means abnormal wagering activity exhibited by players and deemed by a permit holder as a potential indicator of suspicious wagering activity. Unusual wagering activity may include the size of a player's wager or increased wagering volume on a particular event or wager type.

"Vendor" or "sports betting vendor" means a person within the Commonwealth that is engaged by, under contract to, or acting on behalf of a permit holder to provide sports betting-related goods or services that directly affect sports betting in Virginia and that does not meet the criteria for licensing as a principal or a supplier, such as an affiliated marketer or an equipment maintenance provider.

"Virginia college sports" means an athletic event in which at least one participant is a team from a Virginia public or private institution of higher education.

"Voided wager" means a wager voided by a permit holder for a specified sporting event.

"Wager" or "bet" means a sum of money or thing of value that is risked by a sports bettor on the unknown outcome of one or more sporting event, including the form of fixed-odds betting, a future bet, live betting, a money line bet, pari-mutuel betting, parlay bet, pools, proposition bets, spread bet, or in any other form or manner as authorized by regulation of the board. "Wager" or "bet" does not include a sum of money or thing of value risked on an unknown outcome pursuant to the Fantasy Sports Act.

"Written notice" or "notice" means notice provided in paper or electronic form, including electronic mail.

"Youth sports" means an athletic event (i) involving a majority of participants younger than 18 years of age or (ii) in which at least one participant is a team from a public or private elementary, middle, or secondary school, regardless of where such school is located. Regardless of the age of the participants, an athletic event that meets the definition of "college sports" or "professional sports" shall not be considered "youth sports."