ROSS COUNTY FAIR BOARD RULES

1. No concession shall be operated in a manner which presents a hazard to the safety of the patron or the public in general. No equipment shall be used which is not in good working condition. No material shall be used in the construction of the concession which is not sufficient to meet its intended use. If the state inspector or a designated official of the fair board believes there is a hazard in either the operation of the concession, the equipment being used, or the construction of the concession or any part thereof, the concession shall be closed until corrections are made to the satisfaction of the inspector or the designated fair board official.

2. All employees of games, shows and all other concessions shall be properly dressed, neat and clean in appearance during the hours the fair is in operation. Fair patrons shall not be molested or hindered by the concessionaires or their agents or subjected to offensive or obscene conduct or language by them.

3. The operator of a loud speaker and/or sound emanating device at any county, independent fair or the Ohio State Fair shall control the volume so as not to interfere with other concessions or become a nuisance to fair patrons and shall be subject to the approval of the state inspector and/ or the designated official representative of an agricultural society or the Ohio Expositions Commission.

4. Every concessionaire and agent shall work only in front of his own concession and shall not be over four feet from his concession counter while working at a fair.

5. No roving vendor or solicitor, acting for either a profit or non-profit organization or on his own behalf, shall be permitted on a fairground except within the immediate area of the grandstand or coliseum for the purpose of vending food and soft drinks for the benefit of patrons attending scheduled events in the grandstand area or coliseum. The selling of official fair or race programs by an agricultural society, the Ohio Expositions Commission or anyone contracting with an agricultural society or the Ohio Expositions Commission to sell official fair or race programs shall be exempt from this provision.

6. No arcade or playland game shall be permitted at a fair which uses pictures or cards which, in the opinion of the board of directors of the fair, are obscene, lewd, or otherwise objectionable. The use of electrical or mechanical diggers, merchandising wheels or similar devices is prohibited.

7. Operator of the concessions must post, in a conspicuous place in the concession, in letters and figures not less than three fourths of an inch high, a list of the commodities on sale in the concession and the prices of each.

8. No more than one price shall be charged under the same license to play a game at a fair, except that a separate price may be charged for children. Signs shall state the maximum age a person may be in order to play at the child’s price. Multiple prices may be charged for relatively inexpensive games. A maximum of three multiple prices will be permitted and in no case can the multiple price exceed one dollar. A price of “one per” shall be considered one of the three multiple prices.

9. All novelties, straight sales and food concessions shall have a sign posted stating the price of each item priced either individually or in a grouping of equally priced items. Groupings of equally priced items must be so stated that patrons may easily determine the price of the item.

The following activities are prohibited at the Ross County Fair:

(A) Jam auctions;

(B) Fortunetelling, palmistry, phrenology and horoscope;

(C)Handwriting experts (human);

(D) Tattooing;

(E) Hazardous activities such as smashing cars, bottles, etc. with a hammer or mallet.

Prohibited prizes and Sales:

(A) No items shall be sold as merchandise or given as prizes unless approved by the the Fair Board.

(B)Prohibited items include but are not limited to:

(1)Weapons of any kind including firearms, knives (except for kitchen cutlery), whips, martial art items, bike chains, studded jewelry and accessories.

(2)Fireworks and bang caps or bang snaps and stink bombs.

(3)Handcuffs and fingercuffs.

(4)Stretch bottles, unless they are filled with sand art, must be sealed, coated in twenty mil shrink wrap plastic from the manufacturer and be no more than twelve inches in height.

(5) Any obscene item.

(6)Eyeglasses other than sunglasses.

(7)Medicine sales of any kind.

(8)Water pistols or guns, bean or pea shooters.

(9)Immature fowls and immature animals.

(10) Chinese horn nuts.

The following penalties are established and shall be only after one initial warning for the specific violation has been noted where possible on concession license. The penalties are assessed on specific concession activities. A penalty shall be assessed by the Ross County Fair Board. Penalties could range from immediate dismissal to termination of next year’s contract. Penalties shall be assessed for the following:

(11)Cards on squirrel tails or similar items.

(12)Merchandise with number prizes.

(13)Magic ink or invisible ink or disappearing ink.

Games: Rules of Play:

1. No game shall be permitted at a fair in which cash prizes are awarded.

2. All electrical or mechanical games played for amusement only may give a token prize to each participant, if said prize is uniform and is given whether the participant wins or loses, and is given to all participants.

3. Any game which is to be played at county fairs shall be a game of skill and subject to the approval of the Board of Directors of the Ross County Fair.

Schedule of penalties for specific violations:

The following penalties are established and shall be assessed only after one initial warning for the specific violation has been noted where possible on the concession license. The penalties are assessed on the specific concession activity. A penalty shall be assessed by the Ross County Fair Board for the following:

Any violation of the terms stated on the concession license. The refusal or failure to remove prizes or merchandise that have been deemed obscene, objectionable or unsuitable in any way by the particular fair board where the concession is present.

Hazardous or excessive noise levels in any activity with a loud speaker that may annoy fair patrons or hinder the operation of contiguous concessions. Penalty could range from immediate dismissal to termination of next year’s contract.

Making false or misleading advertising statements in any manner. Any improper solicitation or any solicitation beyond four feet of the counter of a concession.

Not posting the concession license.

A sign is not posted or is posted in violation of rule 901:9-2-03(F) of the Administrative Code.

Any display of merchandise which cannot be won in a game concession. Any display of merchandise which cannot be won in a single play of the game.

Any violation of the multiple price rule.

Not posting a price schedule on any concession. Engaging in any prohibited activities, sales or games.

Any fraudulent or dishonest dealings with the public.

Willfully operating a game or concession without making application for a concession license.

Any operation of a concession when the license for that particular concession has been revoked.

Any prohibited roving solicitation.

No petitions signed on fairgrounds.

The use of a concession license by someone other than the licensee or his authorized agent.

Conducting a gambling operation, a lottery or a game of chance. Any hazardous operation that could endanger the safety of any person. The awarding of any cash prizes in a concession operation.

Operation of Shows: (Whole rule deleted)

Walk-through shows and wildlife shows where donations are accepted are prohibited.

The advertising of all shows by banner, word of mouth or other means shall be confined to actual exhibits or features appearing in a show. Any misrep- resentation of the show by banner, word of mouth or any other means shall not be permitted.

Noisemakers used to deceive the public are prohibited.

The following shows are prohibited: All shows detrimental to the best interests of the public. Crime shows and horror shows.

Peep shows, sex shows, girl shows or any type of male/female shows intended to demonstrate sex or sex related actions, activities or materials. Imitation freak shows. Medicine shows. Show within a show. The approval of all other shows and games will be left to the discretion of the Ross County Fair Board after viewing the show or game.

The counter of the ticket or change booth shall not be more than four feet above the ground.

Athletic shows are allowed with rings not less than 16 feet square. Mat platform shall not be less than 40” from the ground. The appearance of the test and equipment must meet the approval of the fair secretary. In order to provide adequate protection to fair patrons, all motordrome shows or any similar shows, where equipment is used as a ballyhoo or for any other purpose, there shall be a barrier, guard rail, or chain of sufficient strength and/or height to prevent the equipment out of control from leaving the platform.