Provides for the purchase of certain lottery tickets via the internet. (2/3 - CA12s6(a)(2)) (8/1/26) (OR INCREASE SD RV See Note)

SB 119 amends Louisiana's gambling statutes and lottery regulations to legalize and establish a framework for internet-based lottery ticket purchases. The bill adds exceptions to the criminal statutes R.S. 14:90 and 14:90.3 that respectively prohibit gambling and gambling by computer, explicitly excluding the purchase of lottery tickets through the internet from those criminal prohibitions. The legislation amends R.S. 47:9008(A)(9) to expressly authorize the Louisiana Lottery Corporation's board of directors to adopt rules governing internet lottery ticket sales and enacts new provisions requiring the board to promulgate comprehensive regulations under the Administrative Procedure Act to implement, administer, and regulate such sales. The bill also adds a definition of "I lottery" to R.S. 47:9002 as the purchase of lottery tickets through the internet.

The practical effect of this legislation is to permit Louisiana residents to purchase state lottery tickets online while establishing mandatory consumer protections. The Louisiana Lottery Corporation's board must implement rules requiring age verification to prevent persons under twenty-one from purchasing tickets online and location verification to restrict purchases to individuals physically present within Louisiana. These requirements directly impact existing lottery retailers and the Lottery Corporation's operational structure, as the corporation must develop and maintain technological systems to verify purchaser identity and location before processing transactions. The changes affect all Louisiana residents who wish to purchase lottery tickets, broadening access to lottery products while maintaining the state's age restrictions and ensuring that only in-state residents participate in the state lottery through this new sales channel.

This legislation operates within Louisiana's existing lottery framework established in Title 47 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes. The purchase of lottery tickets has historically been excepted from general gambling prohibitions under state law, and this bill extends that exception to the internet context by carving it out from both the general gambling statute and the computer gambling statute. The bill's authorization in R.S. 47:9008(A)(9) complements the board's existing authority to adopt lottery rules and adds a specific mandate requiring rulemaking rather than merely permitting it. The effective date of August 1, 2026, allows the Lottery Corporation and the board adequate time to develop and adopt the required administrative rules through the Administrative Procedure Act process before the statute becomes operative. Section 3 directs the Louisiana State Law Institute to renumber definitions alphabetically, a technical housekeeping measure to maintain statutory organization following the addition of the "I lottery" definition.