GARDEN GROVE : Board to Vote on High School Bingo

A preliminary vote has been set for June 5 on a policy that would allow bingo games at high school campuses in the Garden Grove Unified School District.

The policy would allow booster clubs to hold games to raise money for athletic programs. At the request of those groups, the Garden Grove City Council amended its bingo ordinance in January to permit high school bingo.

A final school board vote is set for June 19.

The cost of setting up bingo games, about $6,000 to $10,000 in equipment, and the number of people necessary to run the game have discouraged some schools, said Jim Griffis, director of administrative services for the district.

“And the equipment is permanent. It’s such that you can’t just wheel it out for the games.”

Of the seven high schools in the district, “only three are actually pursuing it full tilt,” Griffis said. Pacifica, La Quinta and Los Amigos, located in some of the more affluent areas of the district, are seeking bingo games. Garden Grove and Bolsa are considering them, he said.

Before applying for a bingo permit, an organization first must incorporate and get tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service and state Franchise Tax Board. “It’s a three-to-six-month process,” Griffis said.

But the returns can be considerable. Estimates of the annual profit from similar high school bingo operations in Orange County run as high as $300,000.