Maryland Political Subdivisions - Miscellaneous Provisions Section 11-201

      (a)      The Board of County Commissioners of Worcester County is hereby authorized to declare that the operation of "free-play pinball machines" (as defined in § 17-401 of the Business Regulation Article) and of "free-play console machines" (as defined in § 17-401 of the Business Regulation Article) is legal. The Board is also authorized to provide for the licensing of each person, firm or corporation maintaining, operating and/or conducting these machines in Worcester County and to establish annual license fees therefor. Provided, however, that the license fee for each machine shall, in no event, be less than $25 nor more than $100, and to prescribe regulations for the issuance of licenses. The money collected from licenses shall go to the general funds of the county. Any person, firm or corporation keeping, maintaining, possessing and/or operating any of the aforesaid machines without a license obtained from the Board, or of violating any regulation to be hereafter adopted by the Board for the issuance of the license and/or the maintenance and operation of any machine licensed hereunder shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof be fined not less than $25 nor more than $1,000.

      (b)      The provisions of this section shall also apply to the licensing of any claw machine, shuffleboard, mechanical bowling game, single coin pinball machine, or any similar device for public amusement whose operation required the insertion of a coin or token, and the result of whose operation depends in whole or part upon the skill of the operator. The license fee for each such machine or device shall not, in any event, be less than $10 nor more than $50, as may be established from time to time by the Board of County Commissioners of Worcester County.

      (c)      Any arcade in Ocean City having fifty or more of such machines or other devices on the premises may secure an arcade license, as in this subsection provided. If there are from fifty to one hundred machines or devices on the premises, the annual license fee shall be $1,000. If there are more than one hundred and not more than one hundred and fifty machines and devices on the premises, the annual license fee shall be $1,500. If there are more than one hundred and fifty and not more than two hundred machines and devices on the premises, the annual license fee shall be $2,000. If there are more than two hundred such machines and devices on the premises, the annual license fee shall be $2,500. Any arcade having on the premises any of the machines or devices listed in subsection (a) of this section shall pay a license fee of not less than $25 for each such machine or device, in addition to the arcade fee provided in this subsection.