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 Illinois has halted payments on winnings of $600 or more due to
the state's ongoing budget impasse.
A class action originally filed in September in U.S. District Court
in Chicago seeking to force the Illinois Lottery to pay winners was
amended last week to add as defendants lottery agencies in 43
states, Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico
that participate in the Mega Millions and Powerball multi-state
lotteries.
Among the claims by unpaid Illinois winners in the amended complaint
are that the state lotteries violated the Racketeer Influenced and
Corrupt Organizations Act or RICO by "promising and advertising that
a winning ticket would entitle the winner to payment of a prize -
including winners from the state of Illinois."
"In spite of these promises and representations, the lottery
departments and lottery directors knew that prize payments would not
be disbursed to winners in the state of Illinois," the lawsuit
stated.
 An impasse between Illinois' Republican governor and Democrats who
control the legislature has left the state without a budget for the
fiscal year that began on July 1. As a result, the state's lottery
initially stopped paying winners of $25,000 or more while continuing
to advertise games, sell tickets and hold lottery drawings.
In October, that threshold dropped to winnings of $600 or more.
Paula Otto, executive director of the Virginia Lottery and lead
director of the Mega Millions consortium, said the amended
complaint's claims against the other state lotteries lack merit.
"Really, this is an issue just within the borders of Illinois," she
said on Monday.
Jeff Anderson, executive director of the Idaho Lottery and board
president of the Multi-State Lottery Association, which operates
Powerball, said he expected the 40 lotteries in his group will try
to dismiss the lawsuit.
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"I don't personally see how it has any merit. It's an Illinois
issue," Anderson said.
J. Samuel Tenenbaum, an associate professor at Northwestern
University's law school, called the use of RICO in this case "pretty
far-fetched," noting that the money will eventually be paid to
Illinois lottery winners.
Steve Rossi, a spokesman for the Illinois Lottery, declined comment
on the amended lawsuit, which seeks to halt Illinois ticket sales
for games with potential winnings in excess of $600, as well as
preventing the lottery from paying its operating expenses until
winners are paid.
Thomas Zimmerman, an attorney representing unpaid Illinois Lottery
winners owed at least $288.4 million, said he will seek a court
order this week temporarily stopping the multi-state lottery
providers from sending Illinois its share of winnings. Instead, that
money would be deposited with the court clerk so it can earn
interest and be paid out to winners, he added.
(Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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