The Massachusetts Lottery is fighting with its retailers. The Lottery says it needs online sales to remain competitive. Retailers say their futures are threatened by online sales. They oppose the bill the Lottery is asking the legislature to pass.
The Joint Committee on Consumer Protection heard testimony pro and con on H 26 as it opens hearings, which would authorize the Lottery to sell the same tickets it sells now through retailers, including scratchers, draw games and Keno—but also online.
The bill was filed by Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, who oversees the Lottery. But arguing in favor of it was Executive Director Michael Sweeney.
“The Massachusetts Lottery should position itself to be where the consumers are. Increasingly, the consumers are online and mobile,” said Sweeney.
The bill would authorize the Lottery Commission to write regulations that would prevent minors from making online purchases, and limit sales to Bay State residents, among other requirements.
The retailers, who have formed Save Our Neighborhood Stores, argued that foot traffic helps fuel the Lottery, and helps the stores by generating more sales besides ticket purchases. They say online sales would destroy small businesses, creating “dark, empty store fronts.”
In a letter to the committee, the coalition wrote: “The introduction of iLottery will decimate foot traffic in their stores and present numerous other challenges to the already struggling business owners. Convenience stores are the heart of communities.” The letter noted that retailers form bounds with their customers and neighborhoods.
The retailers paid for a survey of 550 “frequent voters” which concluded that 12 percent support internet Lottery sales, compared to 69 percent opposing such sales.
While asserting that online Lottery sales would attract millennials who don’t buy them in retail stores, Sweeney committed the Lottery to trying to prevent harm to retailers, saying
“online is not a substitute for the physical retail location.”
Sweeney supports requiring Lottery players to visit a retailer to load cards that could be used to buy online tickets. This also appealed to Senator Barbara L’Italien. “One of the thoughts to try to limit the impact on mom and pop stores would be to have a reloadable card that you would actually go and have to purchase the card, they’d put the money on that card at the store and then you would have to go to the store to reload it, go to the store to redeem your winnings,” she said.
The retailers oppose this approach because it would encourage players to only visit the stores once a week, instead of several times a week.
Stop Predatory Gambling is also opposed to letting the Lottery move online. “Allowing the Lottery to offer online gambling is like putting Dracula in charge of the blood bank,” said a spokesman.
Last year the Senate approved of an amendment to a jobs bill that would have allowed online sales, but the amendment was jettisoned during a conference with the House.
Governor Charlie Baker has said he will consider online lottery sales but will be guided at how it has worked in other states.
