ATM lottery tix nixed in Minnesota

Three years after making Minnesota the first state to say "you betcha!" to the sale of lottery tickets at ATMs, the Minnesota State Lottery will be forced to end the program, according to a report by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Claiming that lottery officials overstepped their authority in approving the expansion of gambling, Minnesota lawmakers passed a bill in May banning the sale of lottery tickets at ATMs and gas pumps in the state. 

Governor Mark Dayton struck down similar legislation sent to him in 2014, however this time he conceded that the legislature had enough votes to override a veto and returned the bill unsigned, thereby allowing it to become law. The state lottery will have 130 days to wind down the program.

Dayton wrote in a letter to the legislature that the ban "will result in less funding for education, transportation, parks, hunting and fishing programs, and programs to protect and preserve our environment."

The new law also might result in actual costs to the state. According to the Star Tribune report, vendors whose contracts with the lottery are cancelled prematurely could seek millions of dollars from the state in compensatory claims.