Tag Archives: Lottery

Texas Lottery Commission dies and is reborn

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

And we have our first curveball of the legislative session. The House voted Tuesday to defeat a must-pass bill reauthorizing the Texas Lottery Commission, a stunning move that casts doubt on the lottery as a whole and may potentially cost … Continue reading →

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Ending the Lottery?

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Seems unlikely, but that won’t stop some folks from trying. As lawmakers look at whether the Texas Lottery Commission is operating effectively, influential Baptists are suggesting that the lottery shouldn’t merely be tweaked. They want it abolished. “Ask the pertinent … Continue reading →

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A step forward for online gambling

Posted on January 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. The Justice Department has reversed its long-held opposition to many forms of Internet gambling, removing a big legal obstacle for states that want to sanction online gambling to help fix their budget deficits. The legal opinion, issued by the … Continue reading →

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States looking at online gambling

Posted on August 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Until the economy returns to the point where states aren’t completely strapped for revenue, I expect them to look at all possible sources of new money. It’s an idea gaining currency around the country: virtual gambling as part of the … Continue reading →

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Bad times are good for the Lottery

Posted on August 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Some people might consider this to be good news, but I don’t. This year, the Texas Lottery Commission’s sales are headed for a record high, on pace to reach about $3.83 billion, up from $3.74 billion last year. The previous … Continue reading →

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The state of the Lottery

Posted on September 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Statesman has an interesting two-part story about the state of the Texas Lottery today. Part One is about the declining fortunes of Lotto Texas and what that means for the state’s finances: Consider: • In 1994, 70 percent of … Continue reading →

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Lottery can’t meet its jackpots

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Lottery officials are celebrating an uptick in Lotto Texas sales this year, but ticket proceeds were nearly $1.2 million short of covering the latest winning jackpot, forcing officials to dip into the state lottery account to cover the difference. … Continue reading →

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Who wants to run the Texas Lottery?

Posted on July 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The contract is up for a bid, and the competition is fierce. Companies that run lotteries around the world are expected to ante up by this week, proposing how they would oversee the Texas Lottery if they were to land … Continue reading →

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The stalking horse

Posted on May 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Peggy Fikac brings up a familiar point about expanded gambling. [Rob Kohler, a Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission consultant working against gambling expansion] suspects the gambling talk is paving the way for a new push to lease the state lottery … Continue reading →

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Rodney Ellis makes the case for expanded gambling

Posted on May 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Via the Trib, here’s State Sen. Rodney Ellis on why he will once again carry a bill to expand gambling in Texas: For what it’s worth, the “People are already gambling, why not let them do it here where we … Continue reading →

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You can now waste your money on Powerball

Posted on February 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As of this week, Powerball tickets are now available in Texas. In case you’re tempted to buy one, here’s how good your chances are of winning. The odds for hitting the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 195,249,054. That’s right, 195 … Continue reading →

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Here comes Powerball

Posted on January 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Powerball will come to Texas as soon as January 31 after a unanimous vote approving sales of its tickets by the Texas Lottery Commission. “What the Legislature has charged us to do is to raise revenue, and this is going … Continue reading →

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Response from the racetracks

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

When I wrote my earlier post about how much revenue expanded gambling would generate for Texas, I said I’d be more than happy to do a similar exercise for someone on the pro-gambling side of things. Sure enough, I got … Continue reading →

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