State Senate Passes Bill to Abolish Texas Lottery Commission

The state Senate on Thursday unanimously approved a bill that would preserve the Texas Lottery but abolished the commission that oversees it.

The bill would move oversight and control of the games’ management to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) and a new lottery advisory committee. Lottery retailers would be required to have an age verification process at the point of sale. The lottery would be subject to strict review during the next two years.

The legislation, which is headed to the Texas House of Representatives, also places the operation of charitable Bingo under the TDLR.

Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood, authored the legislation that serves as a compromise between ending the lottery or reforming it under another state agency.

Hall on Thursday reiterated that his first option was to abolish the lottery entirely.

“We had an operation that was stealing from the people of Texas,” Hall said after the bill was passed. “We had an obligation to do something about it and today we’ve done that.”

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick praised Hall’s efforts to reform the lottery.

“They have a two-year lease on life,” Patrick said before the final vote. “We’ll see what happens under the new agency.”

It’s unclear what kind of reception the bill will receive from House lawmakers. It will be assigned to a committee, but the Legislature’s 140-day session ends June. 2 and lawmakers don’t have much time to settle all lottery-related issues.

“I want to see the lottery killed,” said state Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Prosper, who like Hall, filed a bill to abolish the lottery.

The Lottery Commission is under its 12-year systematic evaluation and will expire Aug. 31 without reauthorization from the Legislature. The evaluation started last year with the Sunset Advisory Commission, which made recommendations on how lottery oversight could be improved.

Under the lottery’s existing set-up, lawmakers would have to approve legislation to extend the lottery or it will expire. Without passage of Hall’s bill, it’s unlikely Texas senators–many of whom have been vocal about the lottery’s problems–will vote to keep the agency alive.

Along with abolishing its commission, Hall’s bill would add new and tighter operating constraints, as well as mandating another review by the Sunset Advisory Commission. The Legislature would have to approve the continuation of the lottery by Sept. 1, 2027.

In what could be one of its last acts, the Lottery Commission is asking the state for $10 million for advertising costs. About 3 percent of the lottery’s $8.4 billion in sales goes toward administrative costs.

Since 1997 the lottery has provided $34 billion to public schools, including $2 billion in 2024. It has generated $267 million for veterans since 2010.

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