AUGUSTA – A 34-year-old law affecting some of Maine’s most passionate cribbage players is due for an update, according to Rep. John Patrick.

The Rumford Democrat, who teamed up with Gov. John Baldacci to craft the new legislation, testified on behalf of the bill before the Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee on Monday.

“Agree with it or not, when you say, ‘I’m going to bet you $5 or 50 cents a point,’ that becomes gambling,” said Patrick, House chairman of the committee.

Last fall, a furor erupted in the cribbage community after a state gaming inspector informed an American Legion in Gardiner they were in violation of state law by holding an unlicensed game.

Many nonprofit and fraternal groups organize cribbage games that collect a daily playing fee, generally $5, from participants and pay off cash prizes to the top finishers. Unless they are licensed, those games are illegal.

Patrick’s proposal would allow groups such as the American Legion or Knights of Columbus to pay a $30 annual licensing fee to host games with up to 20 players. Currently the fee is $7.50 per cribbage board.

The bill would also raise the daily entry fee that groups are allowed to charge participants from $1 to $5.

“Thirty dollars for a year, that’s insignificant when you figure from going from $1 to $5 is a 500 percent increase,” Patrick said.

Paul Rice, a cribbage player from Wells who testified against the bill, said he views the fee as a tax.

“Now we are going to be taxed to play a game that we have played for hundreds of years for free?” Rice said.

The law requiring a license for nonprofit sponsored gambling has been in existence since the early 1970s. It was only after the cribbage game “bust” that nonprofit hosts started realizing what they had been doing for years might be illegal. As a result, many organizations canceled their games for fear of violating the law.

Patrick said his bill reflects common gaming practices of nonprofit groups and would allow them to legally resume play.

“What I’d like to do is get one bill passed that would at least address the smaller groups of veterans,” he said.

Joy Leach, deputy director of communications for Baldacci, said the governor met several times with veterans groups after the incident in Gardiner.

“Once it was brought to his attention, the governor realized this was an outdated law,” Leach said. “The intent is to correct this so fraternal organizations, nonprofits and certainly charitable causes can have these kinds of games.”

State Police Lt. David Bowler told legislators at the hearing that the new bill would satisfy both the state and its residents.

“Through our correspondence with concerned constituents we are confident these moderate and reasonable changes will meet their needs and modernize the games of cards law,” Bowler said.

The committee is scheduled to work further on the bill on Wednesday.