Provides for the purchase of certain lottery tickets through the internet

House Bill 643 amends Louisiana's gambling and lottery statutes to authorize and regulate the purchase of lottery tickets through the internet. The bill adds exceptions to the criminal prohibitions on gambling and gambling by computer in Louisiana Revised Statutes 14:90 and 14:90.3, specifically exempting lawful internet lottery purchases from those criminal provisions. It establishes two new definitions in the Louisiana Revised Statutes 47:9002: "I lottery" as the purchase of lottery tickets through the internet, and "I lottery gross revenues" as the gross revenue from such sales minus total winnings paid to winners. The bill amends R.S. 47:9008(A)(9) to include internet lottery ticket purchases within the matters for which the Louisiana Lottery Corporation board may adopt rules, and it adds a new R.S. 47:9008(B) that mandates the board adopt rules in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act to implement, administer, and regulate internet lottery sales. These administrative rules must establish age verification methods to prohibit purchasers under twenty-one and location verification methods to restrict purchases to persons physically located within Louisiana.

The practical effect of this legislation is to create a new channel for Louisiana residents to purchase lottery tickets online while establishing the regulatory framework to control access and protect revenue. Individuals over twenty-one physically present in Louisiana will be able to purchase lottery tickets through approved internet platforms operated under the Louisiana Lottery Corporation's oversight. The Louisiana Lottery Corporation will bear the responsibility of developing and implementing the technical infrastructure and verification systems necessary to verify both age and location before completing any internet transaction. Revenue generated from internet lottery sales will flow to the corporation and then to the state treasury, with the corporation required to transfer annually to the state treasury at least twenty-five percent of the gross revenues derived from internet lottery operations, consistent with the existing requirement applicable to traditional lottery revenue.

House Bill 643 operates within Louisiana's existing lottery regulatory structure established in R.S. 47:9001 et seq., which grants the Louisiana Lottery Corporation authority to conduct and manage the state lottery subject to board oversight and rules adopted pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act. The bill preserves the existing twenty-five percent minimum revenue transfer requirement while explicitly extending it to include internet lottery gross revenues. By adding the internet lottery exception to the criminal statutes in R.S. 14:90 and 14:90.3, the bill clarifies that authorized purchases through the state lottery system do not constitute illegal gambling under Louisiana criminal law. The bill's directive that the State Law Institute renumber definitions in R.S. 47:9002 to ensure alphabetical order reflects a technical housekeeping requirement necessary to maintain the organizational structure of the definitions section following the addition of the two new terms.