BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Idaho lawmakers fearing foreign participation in the Powerball lottery on Wednesday killed legislation that would have allowed the game with massive jackpots to continue in the state after a period of more than 30 years.
The move came after Idaho Lottery officials filed for a change in state law as Powerball expands to include Australia in 2021 and Britain in 2022. But current Idaho law only allows lotteries in the state to be played by people in the US and Canada.
Idaho was one of the first states to join Powerball in the 1990s. The lottery has since expanded to 45 states, two U.S. territories, and Washington, DC. The Multi-State Lottery Association manages the game.
Idaho’s legislature is dominated by Republicans, but objections to the change also surfaced among Democrats. The bill’s assassination by 10-4 votes by the House State Affairs Committee of the legislature means the state’s final Powerball draw will take place in August.
Republican Representative Heather Scott was concerned that when Australia joins Powerball, the country’s officials could use the treasury revenues to support cases it opposes.
Scott expressed concern that this could happen “in Australia anti-firearms causes which they consider good and we as not good.”
Democratic Rep. Chris Mathias said the Idaho Powerball has been good for business and the state raised millions for public education, but he was concerned that more countries would be added to the Powerball roster.
“I am concerned about the delegation of authority, and essentially handing over our sovereignty to this Multi-State Lottery Association,” he said. “I think we should be concerned that they could be persuaded, there could be heavy lobbying by countries that we are not particularly close to.”
Mathias wanted the bill changed to reflect those concerns, and voted with another Democratic representative and two Republicans against killing the legislation.
Idaho lottery officials have said the game generates about $ 28 million in sales annually in the state, with schools receiving about $ 14 million a year.
Money generated from the sale of Powerball tickets will be held until there is a winner. The addition of two new countries and more players is expected to increase jackpot sizes.
“This is a big jackpot game, so players love to have big jackpots,” Jeff Anderson, director of the Idaho Lottery, told lawmakers. “One of the ways to do that is to have more players in the game.”
Idaho’s biggest Powerball winner was a resident of the small southwestern town of Star, who won $ 220 million in 2005.
Some Idaho lawmakers said they feared that the odds of an Idaho resident winning would decrease with more players.
But the odds remain the same no matter how many players participate, because the odds are not based on the number of players, but on the probability of certain numbers being selected. If there are multiple winners, the jackpots are split.
Anderson tried to convince lawmakers to change state law by assuring them that a country like China – with a different legal system from the US, Australia and Britain – should never join.
Republican Representative Bruce Skaug said he was concerned about the $ 3 million spent annually on advertising to convince people to play Powerball. He proposed the motion that overturned the legislation.
“What we have is 32 years of Idahoans who can voluntarily participate in a lottery game of their choice,” Anderson said after the vote. ‘It has been okay for thirty-two years, not anymore. It’s very disturbing. “
Anderson said Powerball will end in Idaho on Aug. 23 due to the vote.
He warned that, in addition to the money schools in Idaho will lose, the state will face “untold amounts of spending to get rid of all the advertising obligations we have for billboards and point-of-sale materials and everything else. This is going to be very expensive for us.” the people of Idaho. “
Officials from the Multi-State Lottery Association declined to comment in an email about the Idaho Powerball decision.
This story has been corrected to show that the legislation was killed with a 10-4 vote, not a vote.