By Hill                                         H.B. No. 1408

      75R3028 BEM-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to eliminating the state lottery.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  (a)  The State Lottery Act, Chapter 466,

 1-5     Government Code, is repealed effective March 1, 1998.

 1-6           (b)  A lottery ticket may not be sold under the State Lottery

 1-7     Act after December 1, 1997, and a lottery prize may not be awarded

 1-8     under that Act after January 1, 1998.

 1-9           (c)  After the repeal of the State Lottery Act, all funds in

1-10     the state lottery account needed to pay future lottery prize

1-11     installments shall remain in the state lottery account subject to

1-12     the control of the comptroller of public accounts.  Future prize

1-13     payments shall be made by the comptroller.  Any additional funds in

1-14     the state lottery account shall be transferred to the general

1-15     revenue fund not later than March 1, 1998.

1-16           (d)  All property and records of the Texas Lottery Commission

1-17     relating to the state lottery shall be transferred to the

1-18     comptroller not later than March 1, 1998.  On or after that date,

1-19     the comptroller shall take any action necessary to efficiently

1-20     conclude any state business related to the operation of the state

1-21     lottery.

1-22           SECTION 2.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-23     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-24     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-1     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-2     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.