Idaho has announced that its state lottery will no longer participate in the Powerball draw as a result of the decision by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) to expand the game to Australia and the United Kingdom.
The Gem State’s lawmakers moved to bring an end to the Powerball lottery after a run of more than 30 years in the state on Wednesday. Idaho Lottery officials sought a change in state law because the game is expanding to include Australia in 2021 and the UK in 2022.
Current Idaho law only allows lotteries played by people in the US and Canada, so officials introduced a bill to allow the Powerball to continue to operate in the state following its international expansion.
While the state’s Legislature is dominated by Republicans, objections to the change also emerged from Democrats. The killing of the bill by a 10-4 vote by the Legislature’s House State Affairs Committee means the state’s last Powerball drawing will be on August 23.
Some lawmakers in the state raised concerns that the expansion could reach countries with different governmental or societal views of the US.
Democratic Representative Chris Mathias commented, according to The New York Times: “My concern is the delegation of authority, and essentially turning over our sovereignty to this Multi-State Lottery Association.
“I think we should be concerned that they could be persuaded, they could be lobbied heavily by countries that we are not particularly friendly with.”
Idaho was one of the first states to join Powerball in the 1990s. The lottery, run by the MUSL, has since grown to include 45 states, two US territories and Washington DC.
Idaho Lottery Director Jeff Anderson told the committee meeting on Wednesday that Idaho residents spend on average $28m a year to play Powerball, about half of which stays in state and is used to fund public schools and state-operated facilities.
Though other state lotteries would still contribute to the state budget, the loss of the Powerball would eliminate about $14m from it.
The Idaho Lottery said in a statement: “Yesterday, the Idaho House State Affairs Committee held a bill in committee that would have allowed Idahoans to continue to play the Powerball game.
“Work continues with the Legislature to determine an alternative path forward to ensure no disruption in service to Idaho’s single most popular lottery game, for the benefit of Idaho’s public schools and buildings.”
