§ 1017 — Professional wrestling; promoters

§ 1017. Professional wrestling; promoters. 1. For the purposes of this\narticle, "professional wrestling" shall mean an activity in which\nparticipants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of\nproviding entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise a bona\nfide athletic contest or competition.\n 2. Every person, partnership or corporation promoting one or more\nprofessional wrestling exhibitions in this state shall be required to\nobtain from the commission an annual license to conduct such exhibitions\nsubject to terms and conditions promulgated by the commission pursuant\nto rule and consistent with the applicable provisions of this article.\nEach applicant shall pay an annual fee established by the commission\npursuant to rule.\n 3. A licensed promoter of a professional wrestling exhibition in the\nstate shall notify the athletic commission at least ten days in advance\nof the holding of the exhibition. Each such promoter shall execute and\nfile with the comptroller a bond in an amount not less than twenty\nthousand dollars to be approved as to form and sufficiency of sureties\nthereon by the comptroller, conditioned for and guaranteeing the payment\nof professional wrestler's purses, salaries of club employees licensed\nby the commission, the legitimate expenses of printing tickets and all\nadvertising material, payments to sponsoring organizations, and the\napplicable state and local sales and compensating use tax.\n 4. A licensed promoter of a professional wrestling exhibition shall\nprovide for a licensed physician to be present at each exhibition, and\nsuch physician shall examine each wrestler prior to each performance,\nand each such pre-performance examination shall be conducted in\naccordance with regulations prescribed by the commission.\n 5. Every licensed promoter of professional wrestling who promotes six\nor more exhibitions in the state in a calendar year must have in place\nan anti-drug plan and file with the commission a written copy of the\nplan. Each such plan shall address the use of a controlled substance\ndefined in article thirty-three of the public health law, and such plan\nshall at minimum provide for the following:\n (a) dissemination of educational materials to professional wrestlers\nwho perform for any such promoter including a list of prohibited drugs\nand available rehabilitation services; and\n (b) a referral procedure to permit any such professional wrestler to\nobtain rehabilitation services.\n