Statement by
THE FLORIDA LOTTERY
Regarding the purchase of Holiday Millionaire Raffle™ tickets
TALLAHASSEE--It was recently brought to our attention that Florida Lottery Holiday Millionaire Raffle tickets were being offered for sale in a manner inconsistent with state laws governing the purchase and sale of Florida Lottery tickets.
Specifically, some Holiday Millionaire Raffle tickets were being offered for sale or auction on the Internet Web site eBay in apparent violation of both Florida Statutes and eBay's own terms of service. The Florida Lottery Division of Security has contacted eBay's Division of Trust and Safety requesting that those auctions be closed.
Doug Pitts, Director of Security for the Florida Lottery said, "The integrity of our games is paramount to us. Without the public's confidence in our security procedures, we risk the ability to accomplish our mission of selling lottery tickets in an honest and fair manner in order to raise funds for Florida's education system. We take these responsibilities seriously and will pursue and investigate any violations of the law."
It is important to note also that anyone purchasing a lottery ticket from a non-authorized source risks obtaining a counterfeit ticket, which will not be honored for payment. In an effort to help our players avoid being scammed, we are taking this opportunity to reinforce with the public some important laws regarding the purchase and sale of Florida Lottery game tickets.
Florida Statute 24.117 prohibits the sale of tickets by any person or business not under contract with the Florida Lottery as an authorized lottery retailer. The same statute also prohibits the sale of Florida Lottery tickets at any price other than the official, established price. Violations are first-degree misdemeanors and are punishable by fines and jail time. Moreover, Florida Statute 24.115 prohibits the payment of a prize on any ticket sold or purchased in violation of the statutes. Specifically, this means that the Florida Lottery may be prohibited from paying cash or other prizes on tickets acquired through the Internet or other unauthorized sources. Additionally, the same holds true for tickets purchased for an amount other than the original, official price. Finally, Lottery retailers who sell lottery tickets at a price other than the face value are subject to criminal prosecution and termination of their Lottery contract.
The Florida Lottery is delighted by the overwhelming popularity of the game and looks forward to conducting the official drawing on January 1, 2007. In the meantime, we are reminding players who purchased a Holiday Millionaire Raffle ticket to avoid misplacing it and to check to see if they are a winner on New Year's Day.
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