Massachusetts to take another run at passing online lottery legislation

Massachusetts will make another run at approving online lottery products in 2017, according to the state treasurer.

On Wednesday, Massachusetts treasurer Deborah Goldberg (pictured) told the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce that she will renew her push for legislation that will allow the Massachusetts Lottery to join its counterparts in Michigan, Georgia, Kentucky and Illinois in offering web and mobile lottery products.

The Massachusetts Senate gave online lottery sales the green light during its 2016 legislative session but this ‘iLottery’ language was purged before the Senate and House approved the state’s economic development package in late July.

On Wednesday, Goldberg said she’d file her new bill by Nov. 2, one month before she’s required to submit Lottery revenue forecasts for the state’s budget bean-counters. The Lottery earned a $987m profit in fiscal 2016 but this was only $1m more than the previous year, and Goldberg said the Lottery would have posted a decline were it not for the excitement over January’s $1.5b Powerball jackpot.