Texas’s Lottery Commission gets dismantled in overwhelming Senate vote

• Texas Lottery Commission will be no more as the Senate seeks to transfer its powers to the TDLR
• The legal odyssey has been prompted by a chance win by a person who won $83.5m in February, prompting outcry
• The person had bought the ticket via a courier service, which sent lawmakers into a frenzy

The Texas Lottery Commission has found itself in a difficult spot. Its boss, Ryan Mindell, tendered his resignation in April, after politicians assailed the regulator and Mindell personally over a lottery jackpot win that was secured through a courier service.

New bill seeks to tighten control over Texas Lottery and ticket sales

Political discontent reached a boiling point with Texas Republicans, generally a stroppy lot, acting quickly to pass Senate Bill 3070 in which they voted with overwhelming support (31-0) to abolish the Texas Lottery Commission and transfer its remit to the TDLR – the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

Senator Bob Hall led the charge and argued that this was a necessary move occasioned by the lack of transparency and oversight in the state’s operation. Under the TDLR, the lottery and lottery operators would face closer scrutiny, argues the draft law, which is due to be signed by the governor.

The bill specifically grants power to high-ranking state officials who may want to examine the lottery and its operations personally, including the governor and the Attorney General. In the same stride, the bill also seeks to boost consumer protections by notably limiting the sale of lottery tickets to in-person locations only and by in-person purchase, no courier services it seems.

In fact, the bill seeks to go so far as to introduce criminal penalties to any party that sells tickets via other means, such as the phone or mobile bets. Another red flag is the sale of more than 100 tickets in a single transaction or failing to verify a person’s age.

Regular folk and syndicates are equally on the line

The Texas Lottery has been targeted by international groups of organized lottery players who have managed to buy the majority of tickets and enter nearly all possible combinations to "game the system" and cheat locals. One such syndicate spent $26m to purchase nearly all tickets in April 2023 and won the $95m Lotto Texas jackpot.

But even regular winners seem to be under scrutiny. All of the above events were triggered after a woman won $83.5m using a lottery courier service, which triggered lawmakers’ outrage. The payout was frozen, and it is still held by the lottery as an investigation is ongoing. Courier services have been banned since April 29, 2025, however, not least because of the political pressure.

Image credit: Unsplash.com