Charitable entities one step closer to accepting electronic payments for raffle tickets

When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the bingo nights, cookouts and block parties used to fundraise for volunteer firefighter gear and equipment, the Good Intent Hose Company No. 1 turned to online raffles to close the gap. 

“What our supporters helped us accomplish over these past six years is absolutely incredible. Because of their support, we were able to purchase three pieces of fire apparatus … we were able to purchase 20 sets of structural turnout gear without the use of grants,” said Paul Kennedy, the organization’s president emeritus and public information officer. “We contributed to countless other community needs.” 

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That changed in August, when Good Intent suspended online raffles after learning it violated state law. 

“We found ourselves caught between modern fundraising technology and rules written for a very different time … but, very quickly, we realized this wasn’t just about Good Intent,” he continued. 

Just a month earlier, Lancaster Snow Angels returned $20,000 collected through electronic sales for the same reason. 

“That was support people had already offered. The funds we could have raised would have helped us build emergency reserves for older adults and veterans, and better prepare our team for disaster response,” group founder Jennifer Jarvis told a Harrisburg crowd on Monday. “When we obtained our licensing, the rules about accepting these payments were not made clear to us. We would never have knowingly broken the law.” 

The organization, led by Jarvis, offers free snow removal for seniors, veterans and people with disabilities alongside other disaster response services. 

Sen. Devlin Robinson (R-Allegheny) said such payments were temporarily allowed during lockdowns, but the underlying law never changed. 

“Pennsylvania’s antiquated law is still built around the way people paid for these things decades ago. Today, people use their phones and cards to pay for just about everything,” Robinson added. “Most of us don’t walk around with pockets full of cash anymore, and we probably don’t write checks either. So why should we expect the organizations that serve our communities to rely on cash and checks when they are trying to raise money?”

His bill, Senate Bill 416, would allow fire companies, churches, veterans groups and other nonprofits to accept online payments for small games of chance, such as raffles or pull-tab games. It passed the Senate unanimously last summer, but didn’t have a House committee vote until Tuesday.

It again advanced unanimously, though Gaming Oversight Committee Chair Patrick Harkins (D-Erie) said he hoped future budgets would consider direct financial support to the state’s thousands of fire departments.

The bill now moves to the House floor for further consideration.