State officials are asking legislators to ban private companies from selling Iowa lottery tickets and games online.

Tyler Ackerson of the Iowa Department of Revenue said businesses called lottery couriers are operating websites and smart phone apps. “Customers sign up on there, fund their account, and then the courier uses that money to purchase lottery products on behalf of that customer,” Ackerson said. “These lottery couriers typically partner with a business who sets up a stand alone, brick and mortar location that becomes a licensed lottery retailer and then all of those lottery products are purchased through that location.”

Ackerson discussed the issue with a senate subcommittee on Wednesday.

Jake Ketzner, a lobbyist for Lotto.com, told lawmkers the company started selling Nebraska lottery products online this week and would like to operate in Iowa at some point.

“We are active in 18 states. It’s not new,” Ketzner said. “Think of it as kind of an ‘Uber Eats’ model for lotto tickets.”

State officials have already turned down an application from Jackpocket, a New York based lottery courier that wanted to start selling Iowa lottery games online.

“We had no plans to bring legislation this year to try to advance the ball or improve our position relative to that denial,” said Tim Coonan, a lobbyist for Jackpocket, “and we’re hoping to have a more fulsome conversation with policymakers about the service we provide.”

According to the Iowa Department of Revenue, parts of already existing state law prohibit online lottery sales, but the agency’s asking the legislature to include an outright ban in a bill dealing with routine tax matters. The chairman of the Senate’s tax policy committee said the debate about online lottery ticket sales should probably be held in a different committee.

https://www.radioiowa.com/2024/04/04/iowa-lawmakers-asked-to-ban-online-sales-of-lottery-products/