Standing L-R are Greenetrack Head of Security Reginald Spencer, Bingo Clerk Emma Jackson, Sheriff Joe Benison and Beverly Gordon, Assistant to the CEO of Greenetrack

On Tuesday, January 3, 2012, Greenetrack, Inc. issued $53,854.84 in bingo receipts for the month of December, 2010. The Greenetrack checks were presented to Sheriff Jonathan Benison for distribution to the various governmental entities as earmarked in the Sheriff’s Bingo Rules and Regulations.

In these recent distributions from Greenetrack the Greene County Commission will receive $28,423.38; the Sheriff’s Department will receive $10,471.77; the City of Eutaw will receive $5,983.87 and the Towns of Boligee, Forkland and Union will each receive $2,991.94.

These payments are based on the tax formula, devised by Sheriff Beniso, which designates $95 per machine, per month for the County Commission; $35 per machine, per month for the Sheriff’s Department; $20 per machine, per month for Eutaw and $10 per machine, per month for each -  Boligee, Forkland and Union.

The December distribution is based on a monthly average of 299.2 bingo machines operating at the Greenetrack facility.

To date, the Sheriff has not reported receiving any bingo distributions for December from other licensed facilities in the county.

The Sheriff’s bingo rules do not include any distributions for the Greene County School system.  

According to sources, before the state’s first raid on bingo gaming in Greene County, which occurred on June 30 – July 1, 2010, Greenetrack was distributing approximately $145,500 per month to local charities, nearly 1/2 of that went to the Greene County School System.

In the Alabama Constitutional Amendment 743, the Greene County Sheriff was authorized to regulate bingo. “…The Sheriff shall promulgate rules and regulations for the licensing, permitting and operation of bingo games within the county….” When Benison took office in January, 2011 he wrote new bingo rules and regulations which set up a formula that taxed each bingo machine at licensed locations and designated the governmental entities that were to receive these funds.

According to school officials, the last bingo distribution to the school system was received in July, 2010.