Idaho lawmakers end Powerball, cite future foreign participation

BOISE, Idaho — Powerball players in Idaho are going to have to go out of state to play beginning in August.

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Idaho lawmakers, wary of foreign participation in the game, killed legislation on Wednesday that would have continued the game in the state, The Associated Press reported.

Idaho Lottery officials were seeking a change in the state’s regulation in the wake of Powerball expanding to Australia this year and the United Kingdom in 2022, YYC Times of Calgary reported. The current state regulation allows lotteries to be played by residents of the U.S. and Canada, the newspaper reported.

Republican Rep. Heather Scott said she was concerned that when Australia joins Powerball, the country’s officials might use revenue generated for government coffers to back causes she opposes, particularly in anti-gun causes, “which they see as good and we see as not good.”

Democratic Rep. Chris Mathias said Powerball in Idaho has been good for business and helped the state generate millions in revenue for public education, but was concerned that more countries might be added to the Powerball participation roster.

“My concern is the delegation of authority, and essentially turning over our sovereignty to this Multi-State Lottery Association,” Mathias said. “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.”

The change was rejected by a 10-4 vote of the Idaho Legislature’s Home State Affairs Committee, the AP reported.

Idaho lottery officers have said that Powerball drawings generate about $28 million in gross sales yearly within the state, the YYC Times reported. The state was one of the first to begin playing the game during the 1990s.

The lottery now includes 45 states, two U.S. territories and Washington, D.C., the AP reported. The Multi-State Lottery Association runs the game.

Cox Media Group