A state Senate bill is seeking to open the door for the Illinois Lottery to work with and regulate third-party courier services. Should Senate Bill 2035 pass, it would give Illinois lottery players a middleground option between the state’s full-fleded online lottery and going to the store to buy their tickets in person. What differentiates courier services from either of those methods of lottery sales is that there is still a physical ticket involved, but the transaction takes place over the internet.
Courier services provide the online sale of retail lottery tickets through third-party means. The couriers take an order from a customer and then carry out the purchase at a physical retail location. From there, they send a scan of the physical ticket to the online customer, while holding onto the original for safekeeping.
Many states are currently pursuing legislation that would ban these sellers, citing concerns over sales to minors and compromising the integrity of their state-run lottery. However, this bill would put control of the industry into the hands of the Illinois Lottery Board, limiting what couriers would be allowed to do.
What SB2035 says
Sen. Celina Villanueva introduced SB2035 back in February.
The bill calls for amendments to Illinois Lottery Law, opening the door for it to work with courier services, though it is referred to as “third-party entities” in the bill.
It reads:
“Allows a licensed lottery sales agent to enter into an agreement with a third-party entity to assist with processing the sale of lottery tickets on behalf of the licensed lottery sales agent. Requires the licensed sales agent to provide a copy of agreement to the Lottery Control Board within 5 business days of execution.”
SB2035 then has four added requirements for the third-party sellers.
- Terminal usage cannot be comingled at the location.
- A ticket may only be sold to a person physically located in Illinois.
- A third-party entity won’t share or sell user data to an entity unaffiliated with the retailer or third-party entity.
- The third-party entity shall adhere to all rules established by the Illinois Lottery Board related to the sale of lottery tickets.
The bill also details that the lottery tickets can’t be sold for a greater price than what the Illinois Lottery dictates.
Violations of the bill would see persons convicted of a Class B misdemeanor or up to a Class 4 felony depending on the severity of the violation.
SB2035 has been with three different committees, most recently being re-referred to the Assignments Committee on April 11.
Illinois already has online lottery sales
What makes this bill interesting is that the Illinois Lottery already offers legal online sales of its products, both through a mobile app and a website.
Operated by Allwyn North America, the Illinois Online Lottery offers six different draw games and over 30 “Fast Play” options for purchase. The “Fast Play” games are Illinois’ e-instant option, which relates to an online version of a scratch ticket.
Last October, Illinois announced it had $686 million in online lottery sales for Fiscal Year 2024, a new record. That helped contribute to an overall record year of sales for the Illinois Lottery. It recorded $3.86 billion for the fiscal year, generating $883.6 million in proceeds to the state.
Courier sales would apply to retail lottery
Should couriers work with the Illinois Lottery, it would be through the retail industry.
In other states, couriers have often set up their own licensed retail locations in order to easily purchase the tickets for their customers. It also allows the courier to reap the benefits of bonuses retailers receive when a customer wins a jackpot.
Retailers in other states have spoken out about couriers cutting into their lottery sales. But, that’s usually also the case with a state-run online lottery.
This bill would open Illinois up to all forms of lottery sales and only increase the overall bottom line. The couriers may not have the impact they have in other states that don’t have an iLottery, but they could still bring in new customers to increase total sales and funds for Illinois.
The only unique product the third-party sellers may be able to offer is online sales of retail scratch tickets, should the Illinois Lottery allow it.
