State Lotteries

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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to state lotteries; amending s. 2
24.103, F.S.; defining the term "ball machine"; 3
revising the definitions of the terms "major 4
procurement" and "retailer"; amending s. 24.105, F.S.; 5
revising the powers and duties of the Department of 6
the Lottery; amending s. 24.108, F.S.; revising the 7
schedule for the department to have a certain report 8
produced and submitted to the Governor and the 9
Legislature; amending s. 24.111, F.S.; revising the 10
information required to be provided to the department 11
by persons who submit a bid, a proposal, or an offer 12
to negotiate a contract for major procurement; 13
amending s. 24.112, F.S.; revising the bond amount a 14
retailer may be required to post for the period within 15
which the retailer is required to remit lottery funds 16
to the department; revising certain requirements 17
relating to lottery vending machines; amending s. 18
24.116, F.S.; authorizing the division's sworn law 19
enforcement officers to purchase and present lottery 20
tickets to a lottery retailer to claim a prize under 21
certain circumstances; amending s. 24.118, F.S.; 22
revising certain prohibitions and penalties relating 23
to presenting a counterfeit or altered state lottery 24
ticket; prohibiting certain false claims relating to 25

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state lottery tickets; prohibiting a lottery retailer 26
or an employee thereof from using such position to 27
knowingly facilitate, participate in, or otherwise 28
assist in the theft of a lottery ticket from a retail 29
establishment, patron, or customer; providing criminal 30
penalties; defining the terms "patron" and "customer"; 31
providing an effective date. 32
33
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 34
35
Section 1. Present subsections (1) through (6) of section 36
24.103, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (2) 37
through (7), respectively, a new subsection (1) is added to that 38
section, and present subsections (2) and (4) of that section are 39
amended, to read: 40
24.103 Definitions.—As used in this act: 41
(1) "Ball machine" means a device that mechanically mixes 42
a set of numbered balls and then randomly draws from that mix to 43
determine the winning numbers for a specific game. 44
(3)(2) "Major procurement" means a procurement for a 45
contract for the printing of tickets for use in any lottery 46
game, consultation services for the startup of the lottery, any 47
goods or services involving the official recording for lottery 48
game play purposes of a player's selections in any lottery game 49
involving player selections, any goods or services involving the 50

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receiving of a player's selection directly from a player in any 51
lottery game involving player selections, any goods or services 52
involving the drawing, determination, or generation of winners 53
in any lottery game, the security report services provided for 54
in this act, or any goods and services relating to marketing and 55
promotion which exceed a value of $25,000. 56
(5)(4) "Retailer" means the department or a person who 57
sells lottery tickets on behalf of the department pursuant to a 58
contract. 59
Section 2. Present paragraphs (i) and (j) of subsection 60
(9) of section 24.105, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as 61
paragraphs (j) and (k), respectively, a new paragraph (i) is 62
added to that subsection, and paragraphs (a) and (d) of 63
subsection (9) and subsection (17) of that section are amended, 64
to read: 65
24.105 Powers and duties of department.—The department 66
shall: 67
(9) Adopt rules governing the establishment and operation 68
of the state lottery, including: 69
(a) The type of lottery games to be conducted, except 70
that: 71
1. The No name of an elected official may not shall appear 72
on the ticket or play slip of any lottery game or on any prize 73
or on any instrument used for the payment of prizes, unless such 74
prize is in the form of a state warrant. 75

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2. No Coins or currency may not shall be dispensed from 76
any electronic computer terminal or device used in any lottery 77
game. 78
3. Other than as specifically provided in s. 24.112, a no 79
terminal or device may not be used for any lottery game which 80
may be operated solely by the player without the assistance of 81
the retailer. 82
(d) The method of selecting winning tickets. However, if a 83
lottery game involves the use of a ball machine to conduct a 84
drawing, the drawing must shall be public and witnessed by an 85
accountant employed by an independent certified public 86
accounting firm. The department shall inspect the equipment used 87
in the drawing shall be inspected before and after the drawing. 88
(i) The acceptable forms of payment for ticket purchases. 89
(17) Have the authority to Enter into agreements with 90
other states for the operation and promotion of a multistate 91
lottery if such agreements are in the best interest of the state 92
lottery. The authority conferred by this subsection is not 93
effective until 1 year after the first day of lottery ticket 94
sales. 95
Section 3. Subsections (6) and (7) of section 24.108, 96
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 97
24.108 Division of Security; duties; security report.— 98
(6) The division shall monitor ticket validation and 99
lottery drawings where ball machines are used to select winning 100

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numbers. 101
(7)(a) By July 1, 2027, and once every 2 years thereafter 102
After the first full year of sales of tickets to the public, or 103
sooner if the secretary deems necessary, the department shall 104
engage an independent firm experienced in security procedures, 105
including, but not limited to, computer security and systems 106
security, to conduct a comprehensive study and evaluation of all 107
aspects of security in the operation of the department. 108
(b) The portion of the security report containing the 109
overall evaluation of the department in terms of each aspect of 110
security must shall be presented to the Governor, the President 111
of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. 112
The portion of the security report containing specific 113
recommendations is shall be confidential and must shall be 114
presented only to the secretary, the Governor, and the Auditor 115
General; however, upon certification that such information is 116
necessary for the purpose of effecting legislative changes, such 117
information must shall be disclosed to the President of the 118
Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who may 119
disclose such information to members of the Legislature and 120
legislative staff as necessary to effect such purpose. However, 121
any person who receives a copy of such information or other 122
information which is confidential pursuant to this act or rule 123
of the department shall maintain its confidentiality. The 124
confidential portion of the report is exempt from the provisions 125

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of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 126
(c) Thereafter, similar studies of security shall be 127
conducted as the department deems appropriate but at least once 128
every 2 years. 129
Section 4. Subsection (2) of section 24.111, Florida 130
Statutes, are amended to read: 131
24.111 Vendors; disclosure and contract requirements.— 132
(2) The department shall investigate the financial 133
responsibility, security, and integrity of each vendor with 134
which it intends to negotiate a contract for major procurement. 135
Such investigation may include an investigation of the financial 136
responsibility, security, and integrity of any or all persons 137
whose names and addresses are required to be disclosed pursuant 138
to paragraph (a). Any person who submits a bid, a proposal, or 139
an offer as part of a major procurement must, at the time of 140
submitting such bid, proposal, or offer, provide the following: 141
(a) A disclosure of the vendor's name and address and, as 142
applicable, the name and address and any additional disclosures 143
necessary for an investigation of the financial responsibility, 144
security, and integrity of the following: 145
1. If the vendor is a corporation, the officers, 146
directors, and each stockholder in such corporation; except 147
that, in the case of owners of equity securities of a publicly 148
traded corporation, only the names and addresses of those known 149
to the corporation to own beneficially 5 percent or more of such 150

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securities need be disclosed. 151
2. If the vendor is a trust, the trustee and all persons 152
entitled to receive income or benefit from the trust. 153
3. If the vendor is an association, the members, officers, 154
and directors. 155
4. If the vendor is a partnership or joint venture, all of 156
the general partners, limited partners, or joint venturers. 157
158
If the vendor subcontracts any substantial portion of the work 159
to be performed to a subcontractor, the vendor must shall 160
disclose all of the information required by this paragraph for 161
the subcontractor as if the subcontractor were itself a vendor. 162
(b) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in 163
which the vendor does business and of the nature of that 164
business for each such state or jurisdiction. 165
(c) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in 166
which the vendor has contracts to supply gaming goods or 167
services, including, but not limited to, lottery goods and 168
services, and of the nature of the goods or services involved 169
for each such state or jurisdiction. 170
(d) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in 171
which the vendor has applied for, has sought renewal of, has 172
received, has been denied, has pending, or has had revoked a 173
gaming license or contract of any kind and of the disposition of 174
such in each such state or jurisdiction. If any gaming license 175

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or contract has been revoked or has not been renewed or any 176
gaming license or contract application has been either denied or 177
is pending and has remained pending for more than 6 months, all 178
of the facts and circumstances underlying this failure to 179
receive such a license must be disclosed. 180
(e) A disclosure of the details of any conviction or 181
judgment of a state or federal court of the vendor of any felony 182
or any other criminal offense other than a traffic violation. 183
(f) A disclosure of the details of any bankruptcy, 184
insolvency, reorganization, or any pending litigation of the 185
vendor. 186
(g) Such additional disclosures and information as the 187
department may determine to be appropriate for the procurement 188
involved. 189
(h) The department shall lease all vending machines that 190
dispense online lottery tickets, instant lottery tickets, or 191
both online and instant lottery tickets. 192
(i) The department will require a performance bond for the 193
duration of the contract. 194
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The department may shall not contract with any vendor who fails 196
to make the disclosures required by this subsection, and any 197
contract with a vendor who has failed to make the required 198
disclosures is shall be unenforceable. Any contract with any 199
vendor who does not comply with such requirements for 200

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periodically updating such disclosures during the tenure of such 201
contract as may be specified in such contract may be terminated 202
by the department. This subsection must shall be construed 203
broadly and liberally to achieve the ends of full disclosure of 204
all information necessary to allow for a full and complete 205
evaluation by the department of the competence, integrity, 206
background, and character of vendors for major procurements. 207
Section 5. Subsection (9) and paragraph (a) of subsection 208
(15) of section 24.112, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 209
24.112 Retailers of lottery tickets; authorization of 210
vending machines to dispense lottery tickets.— 211
(9)(a) The department may require every retailer to post 212
an appropriate bond as determined by the department, using an 213
insurance company acceptable to the department, in an amount not 214
to exceed three times twice the average lottery ticket sales of 215
the retailer for the period within which the retailer is 216
required to remit lottery funds to the department. For the first 217
90 days of sales of a new retailer, the amount of the bond may 218
not exceed three times twice the average estimated lottery 219
ticket sales for the period within which the retailer is 220
required to remit lottery funds to the department. This 221
paragraph does shall not apply to lottery tickets which are 222
prepaid by the retailer. 223
(b) In lieu of such bond, the department may do any of the 224
following: 225

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1. Purchase blanket bonds covering all or selected 226
retailers. 227
2. or may Allow a retailer to deposit and maintain with 228
the Chief Financial Officer securities that are interest bearing 229
or accruing and that, with the exception of those specified in 230
sub-subparagraphs a. and b. subparagraphs 1. and 2., are rated 231
in one of the four highest classifications by an established 232
nationally recognized investment rating service. Securities 233
eligible under this subparagraph are paragraph shall be limited 234
to: 235
a.1. Certificates of deposit issued by solvent banks or 236
savings associations organized and existing under the laws of 237
this state or under the laws of the United States and having 238
their principal place of business in this state. 239
b.2. United States bonds, notes, and bills for which the 240
full faith and credit of the government of the United States is 241
pledged for the payment of principal and interest. 242
c.3. General obligation bonds and notes of any political 243
subdivision of the state. 244
d.4. Corporate bonds of any corporation that is not an 245
affiliate or subsidiary of the depositor. 246
3. Allow a retailer to remit funds to the department for 247
deposit in an interest-bearing bank account held by the 248
department. 249
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Such securities must shall be held in trust and shall have at 251
all times a market value at least equal to an amount required by 252
the department. 253
(15) A vending machine may be used to dispense online 254
lottery tickets, instant lottery tickets, or both online and 255
instant lottery tickets. 256
(a) The vending machine must: 257
1. Dispense a lottery ticket following receipt of payment 258
from after a purchaser via inserts a coin, or currency, or a 259
noncredit, cashless payment method authorized by the department; 260
in the machine. 261
2. Be capable of being electronically deactivated for a 262
period of 5 minutes or more; and. 263
3. Be designed to prevent its use for any purpose other 264
than dispensing a lottery ticket. 265
Section 6. Subsection (2) of section 24.116, Florida 266
Statutes, is amended to read: 267
24.116 Unlawful purchase of lottery tickets; penalty.— 268
(2) An No officer or employee of the department or any 269
relative living in the same household with such officer or 270
employee may not purchase a lottery ticket. Sworn law 271
enforcement officers employed by the Division of Security may 272
purchase lottery tickets and present lottery tickets to a 273
lottery retailer to claim a prize when such purchase or 274
presentation of lottery tickets is necessary for the performance 275

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of the officers' official duties, including, but not limited to, 276
compliance operations and investigations. 277
Section 7. Subsection (3) of section 24.118, Florida 278
Statutes, is amended, and subsections (5) and (6) are added to 279
that section, to read: 280
24.118 Other prohibited acts; penalties.— 281
(3) COUNTERFEIT OR ALTERED TICKETS.—A Any person who: 282
(a) Knowingly presents a counterfeit or altered state 283
lottery ticket; 284
(b) Knowingly transfers a counterfeit or altered state 285
lottery ticket to another to present for payment; or 286
(c) With intent to defraud, falsely makes, alters, forges, 287
passes, or counterfeits a state lottery ticket; or 288
(d) Files with the department a claim for payment based 289
upon facts alleged by the claimant which facts are untrue and 290
known by the claimant to be untrue when the claim is made; 291
292
commits is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as 293
provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 294
(5) FALSE CLAIM.—A person may not, when presenting or 295
causing to be presented any claim for payment or approval to an 296
officer or employee of the department or to a lottery retailer, 297
knowingly and willfully: 298
(a) Falsify or conceal a material fact; 299
(b) Make any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or 300

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representation relating to a material fact; or 301
(c) Make or use any false document, knowing the document 302
contains a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry 303
relating to a material fact. 304
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A person who violates this subsection commits a felony of the 306
third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, 307
or s. 775.084. 308
(6) THEFT OF LOTTERY TICKET BY RETAILER.— 309
(a) A lottery retailer or an employee thereof may not use 310
his or her position to knowingly facilitate, participate in, or 311
otherwise assist in the theft of any lottery ticket from the 312
retail establishment or from a patron or customer of the retail 313
establishment. 314
(b) A person who violates paragraph (a) commits a felony 315
of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 316
775.083, or s. 775.084. 317
(c) As used in this subsection, the terms "patron" and 318
"customer" include a sworn law enforcement officer of the 319
Division of Security presenting a lottery ticket to a lottery 320
retailer to claim a prize during the performance of the law 321
enforcement officer's official duties. 322
Section 8. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 323