Part 3

Registration of Owners and Employees

• a. No licensee shall employ or allow a person to work in the game room without the person having first been registered and approved in accordance with the provisions of this section.

• b. Each owner and employee must be registered. Registration permits for pointholders and key management employees shall be applied for and processed in accordance with subsection 8-11.28 and shall be approved or disapproved by the City Council. Registration permits for employees other than key management employees shall be applied for and processed in accordance with subsection 8-11.28 and shall be approved or disapproved by the Chief of Police.

• a. Application. Each owner, employee or pointholder (or pointholder representative in case that pointholder is not a natural person) shall present himself or herself at the office of the Chief of Police during normal business hours at least ten (10) calendar days before the beginning of employment or ownership to be registered, or within fifteen (15) days of submittal to the City of a license application for pointholder permit applications and key management employee applications submitted in connection with a license application. The applicant shall complete an application under penalty of perjury and be fingerprinted and photographed. The employee or the pointholder shall pay a nonrefundable registration fee in the amount established by City Council resolution, and sufficient to offset the cost of purchasing equipment to produce identification cards, the cost of investigations conducted pursuant to Part 3 of this section, administrative and processing costs, and the cost of producing identification cards; however, the licensee or license applicant may be required to fund some or all of such direct costs in connection with its license application instead of through individual registration fees for pointholders and employees.

Each application shall include the following information:

1. The true name of the person, including all other names by which such person is or has been known;

2. The business and permanent residence address of the person;

3. The name of the game room, and the name of the game room licensee in and for which such person intends to work or in whose gaming facility such person has or intends to have an ownership interest;

4. The position and duties the person shall hold and perform while in the employ of licensee, if such person intends to be an employee;

5. A statement indicating whether or not such person has at any time been convicted of any crimes other than minor traffic offenses, and if so, the nature of the crime for which the person was convicted, the date and jurisdiction of the conviction;

6. Two (2) recent photographs of the person;

7. A statement that the person understands and agrees to the inclusion, in any report to the City Administrator or City Council, of any criminal conviction that the Chief of Police considers pertinent and necessary, and a statement that the person accepts all risks of any adverse public notice, publicity, embarrassment, criticism, financial loss or all other actions and consequences which may result from activities with respect to reviewing, processing, approving or disapproving such applications, and that the person waives any claims from damages against the City or its agents resulting therefrom, other than damages resulting from the intentional, willful or malicious conduct of the City or its agents;

8. Certification by the applicant that contents of the application are true under penalty of perjury;

9. Except as to the licensee, a report prepared, or caused to be prepared, by the licensee, at its option, summarizing the results of the licensee's screening and background investigation concerning the pointholder or employee, which shall have been undertaken by the licensee at licensee's expense; and

   10. Other relevant information that the Chief of Police may request.

• b. Investigation. The Chief of Police shall conduct a background investigation on each applicant, including obtaining criminal history information for each.

• c. Decision. The Chief of Police shall mail a written decision to the applicant and the licensee within ten (10) days after receipt of the application, except that if the application is for a pointholder registration permit or a key management employee registration permit, the Chief of Police shall make a written report to the City Administrator outlining the recommendation of the Chief of Police with respect to approval or denial of such application, and the City Council shall determine whether to approve, condition or disapprove such application. If registration is denied, the Chief of Police or City Council, as applicable, shall state the reasons for denial. The Chief of Police or City Council, as applicable, may deny registration for good cause, including but not limited to any one of the following grounds:

  1. That the person has been convicted of a crime involving lotteries, gambling, bookmaking, larceny, perjury, bribery, extortion, fraud, thefts, embezzlement, or a crime involving moral turpitude, or has been convicted of the sale or possession for sale of a controlled substance, prostitution, pimping, or pandering, or has been convicted of any crime substantially related to service or entertainment business;

  2. That the person has committed an act involving dishonesty, fraud, or deceit;

  3. That the person has been refused, or has had revoked, any gambling, gaming or entertainment license or permit by an agency or government within five (5) years of the date of registration application;

  4. That the person has violated a provision of this section;

  5. That the person has knowingly made a false statement in his or her application; or

  6. That the person has violated a law or ordinance relating to the operation of a game room.

If the background investigation is not complete within the ten (10) day period, the Chief of Police shall grant a temporary registration for any employee other than a key management employee, pending a final decision and shall issue a temporary identification card, which shall be valid for not more than thirty (30) days.

• d. Identification Card. The Chief of Police shall provide each registered owner, employee, and pointholder with a permanent identification card, which shall be displayed in accordance with subsection 8-11.29. The identification card shall include a photograph, name of owner or employee, name of game room, position or job title and expiration date.

The licensee shall notify the Chief of Police within twenty-four (24) hours of the loss of any identification card, and may issue a temporary identification card to a registered employee or pointholder for a three (3) day period. The Chief of Police shall issue a new permanent identification card to the registered employee or pointholder within three (3) days of being notified of the loss, subject to payment by the employee or pointholder of a reasonable replacement fee.

• e. Renewal. Each registered owner, employee, and pointholder shall renew his or her registration every two (2) years, on the anniversary of the initial registration. The City Council shall consider renewal of registration permits for pointholders and key management employees, and the Chief of Police shall address renewal of registration permits for employees other than key management employees.

• f. The licensee shall inform the Chief of Police in writing of any change in employment or status of a registered employee or pointholder within ten (10) days of the effective date of the change. A change includes termination, leave of absence, or a promotion or other change in job title.

The registered employee or owner shall notify the Chief of Police in writing within ten (10) days of any change in the information which that person provided in the registration application.

• g. Monthly Listing. On the first day of each month, the licensee shall submit to the Chief of Police a current and complete list of all employees and owners.

Each employee and pointholder shall display his or her personal identification card at all times while physically present in the game playing area. The card shall be prominently displayed on the outermost garment at approximately chest height, and shall at all times be readable and in good condition. No employee shall be allowed to commence work and no employee or owner shall be allowed to remain the game playing area who does not display such identification. Failure to comply with this section constitutes grounds for suspension or revocation of the employee's registration and/or the game room's license.

• a. Grounds. The Chief of Police may suspend or revoke the registration of an employee or owner on any one of the grounds that would have been a basis for denial of the registration when applied for initially.

• b. Notice. The Chief of Police shall notify the owner or employee and the licensee in writing of the proposed suspension or revocation. The notice shall state the reasons and shall advise the registrant of the opportunity to show cause why the registration should not be suspended or revoked.

• c. Show Cause Hearing. Within ten (10) days of the date of mailing, the owner or employee, as applicable, or the licensee may request in writing a show cause hearing before the Chief of Police, the purpose of which is to show cause why the registration should not be suspended or revoked. The owner or employee, as applicable, or the licensee are deemed to have waived the right to a hearing if the Chief of Police does not receive the request within the ten (10) day period.

The Chief of Police shall schedule the hearing within fifteen (15) days after receiving the request. The Chief of Police shall mail notice of the time, place and date of the hearing to the owner or employee, as applicable, and the licensee within five (5) days after receipt of the request. Technical rules of evidence shall not apply to the show cause hearing.

• d. Decision. If, on the basis of substantial evidence presented at the hearing, the Chief of Police finds good cause, the Chief of Police may suspend or revoke the registration. The Chief of Police shall send written notice of the decision within (5) days after the close of the hearing. Suspension or revocation by the Chief of Police of the registration of a pointholder or a key management employee shall be appealable to the City Council upon written notice of appeal filed with the City Administrator within ten (10) days of the written notice of the decision prepared and sent by the Chief of Police.

• a. Except as otherwise provided in this section, it is unlawful for any pointholder or any other person having any interest whatsoever or at all in the ownership of a gaming room facility, whether legal or equitable, or as trustor or trustee, or of whatsoever kind of character, to transfer such points and/or interest without the consent and permission of the City Council. No transfer or assignment of any point or interest will be recognized by the City unless the transferee or assignee has fully complied with the requirements of the Gaming Registration Act of the State of California and all the applicable rules and regulations relating to the transfer and ownership of points or interests in gaming facility as promulgated by the Attorney General of the State of California and the City of Albany.

• b. Any person desiring to sell, transfer, assign, or otherwise hypothecate any point or interest, or fraction thereof, in a gaming facility shall file with the City Administrator a written application for permission to transfer such interest. Each such application shall set forth, under penalty of perjury, in addition to such other information as the City Administrator and/or the City Council may require, the following information:

  1. The date of the application;

  2. The true name of the applicant and proposed transferee;

  3. The status of the transferee as being an individual, corporation, association, copartnership, joint venture, trustor, trustee, or other entity;

  4. The residence and business address of the transferee, if an individual;

  5. If the transferee is other than an individual, the name, residence, and business address of each of the copartners or members of the firm, copartnership, trustor, trustee, or joint venture and the names and residence and business addresses of each of the principal officers and directors of the association or corporation applicant;

  6. The number of points and/or the nature of interest sought to be sold, transferred, assigned, or otherwise hypothecated.

• c. The application required by this subsection shall be confidential, and the documents containing such information shall be confidential and shall not be open to public inspection except in connection with the enforcement or administration of this section, or as may be required by the California Public Records Act.

Whenever an application for sale or transfer of points has been filed with the City, the City Administrator shall promptly and diligently make a full and complete investigation of the transferee(s). Concurrently with the filing of the application, the transferee shall be fingerprinted and photographed by the police department, and shall pay all applicable fees. Approval of the sale or transfer of points is conditioned upon complying with the registration provisions in Part 3 and subsection 8-11.28, in particular.

Each such transfer application shall be accompanied by a processing fee payable in advance, as set by resolution of the City Council, in an amount sufficient to cover the costs (including administrative costs) of the investigation and of processing the application. The fees set forth pursuant to this section shall be the property of and be retained by the City, whether the application for transfer is granted or denied.

• a. Consider by City Council. Whenever an application for such a transfer is presented to the City Council, the City Council shall consider such application on the same basis and subject to the same hearing procedures as are applicable to a new license application.

• b. Decision of the Council. The City Council may in its discretion either approve, conditionally approve, or deny the application.

Any pointholder who has not previously been registered in accordance with this section shall file, as a prerequisite to the continued holding of any ownership interest, the application to be investigated, pay the fee, and be reviewed by the City Council as provided for persons applying for new ownership interest. Until such time as the investigation has been completed, no financial returns from the operations of the game room shall be paid to the pointholder. If the City Council denies any application, within six (6) months after the receipt of a notice of such denial, said owner shall divest himself or herself of such ownership interest.

• a. In the event that a pointholder is convicted or is found to be guilty of a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or of any felony, the pointholder shall divest himself or herself of any ownership interest within one hundred twenty (120) days after a notice of divestiture is served on such person by the City pursuant to such person's final conviction of such crime. A plea or verdict of guilty, or a conviction following a plea of nolo contendere, to a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or a felony shall be deemed to be a final conviction within the meaning of this section, unless the conviction is appealed to a higher court, in which case the judgment and verdict of that court shall constitute the final action pursuant to which notice of divestiture shall be served if the conviction is affirmed. Within thirty (30) days after the service of a notice of divestiture, the person or persons subject to such notice (appellant) may request in writing a hearing before the City Council to appeal the notice and request a waiver of the divestiture requirement, including transfer to a trustee. A hearing shall be scheduled before the City Council within thirty (30) days after the receipt of the appellant's written request. Upon the conclusion of the hearing, the City Council may disregard the appellant's conviction or take other modifying steps if it is found and determined by the City Council that mitigating circumstances exist and that the public welfare will be adequately protected. In making such determination, the City Council shall consider any factor it deems relevant, including the following:

  1. The type, nature and extent of the pointholder's interest, including the involvement, if any, in the operations of the gaming facility;

  2. The nature, time and seriousness of the offense;

  3. The circumstances surrounding the conviction;

  4. The age of the person at the time of the conviction;

  5. The presence or absence of rehabilitation or efforts at rehabilitation;

  6. Contributing social and environmental conditions;

  7. The record of the proceedings leading to the conviction;

  8. The financial stability of the pointholder, including his or her personal history, reputation for habits, and traits of character and moral background; and

  9. Such other factors deemed relevant by the City Council in determining the status of the pointholder.

The decision of the City Council shall be final and conclusive.

• b. No person required to divest a game room related interest pursuant to an order of divestiture shall transfer the same to his or her spouse, child, sibling, parent or to his or her spouse's child, sibling or parent.

• c. Each day of noncompliance with a notice of divestiture shall constitute a separate and complete offense. In addition, the City Attorney may invoke appropriate civil remedies available to enforce compliance.

If any pointholder is a corporation or similar entity, the licensee shall keep on file with the City Administrator at all times a current list showing the names and addresses of all officers, directors and shareholders of five (5%) percent or more of stock of such corporation or other entity.

• a. Upon the death of any pointholder, the pointholder's interest in the license shall be transferred in accordance with subsections 8-11.31 through 8-11.37.