

Compliance Updates
Texas House Passes Bill to Abolish Texas Lottery Commission
The Texas House has approved legislation to abolish the Texas Lottery Commission and reform lottery operations after multiple scandals have rocked the agency.
Authored by State Sen. Bob Hall (R-Edgewood), Senate Bill 3070 abolishes the commission that has overseen the lottery since shortly after its founding in 1991, moving operations to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
As originally written, the bill would also limit ticket sales per transaction, require age verification at the point of sale, push the agency into a two year probationary period and provide for greater oversight of the lottery—oversight that has been either intentionally or unintentionally lacking.
In January, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick made an impromptu visit to a lottery ticket reseller responsible for selling millions of tickets online. During the course of his visit, he was denied access to the area where ticket printing was taking place.
The bill, as originally written, would allow the lieutenant governor, Speaker of the House, attorney general, and governor the ability to act as inspectors of lottery operations.
At the eleventh hour, State Rep. Charlie Geren (R-Fort Worth) offered a 58-page amendment to the measure that removed this and other critical parts of the bill. It was this amended bill that was, according to Geren, drafted with the lottery vendors, colloquially called stakeholders, that ultimately passed the House.
Among other changes, the Geren amendment changed vendor and employee retention.
While it was argued that the current employees would provide for a smoother transition from the TLC to TDLR, this would include members of the staff who were complicit in the extra legislative expansion of gambling in the state of Texas, and covering for the lottery’s multiple sins.
The Geren amendment, passed under the watchful eye of IGT’s lobbyist and former chief of staff to Gov. Greg Abbott, Luis Sanez, also guarantees that the state lottery contract will remain with its current vendor, IGT. According to a lawsuit filed in Houston, the company played a critical role in an international gambling syndicate’s rigging of the April 2023 $95 million jackpot.
According to testimony given to the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee, representatives from IGT were onsite for hours during the ticket printing at a location that conducted no retail business, which is against state rules. This is the same location where children were filmed printing tickets.
Geren, a longtime proponent of expanding gambling in Texas, failed to pass a bill last session that would have allowed casino gambling in the state. This session, the lottery, and its corrupt operation took all the oxygen out of the room.
State Rep. Brent Money (R-Greenville) offered an amendment to Geren’s amendment that would have abolished the lottery and not just the commission. Money’s amendment failed by a vote of 71-58.
Geren’s amendment was ultimately adopted in a vote of 91-44.
The legislation passed in a vote of 110-29.
Now, the bill requires one more vote in the House before going back to the Senate for either approval or to be reconciled in a conference committee.
If the bill is not reconciled, the lottery may be abolished, or a special session could be forced to save the corruption-plagued institution.
The post Texas House Passes Bill to Abolish Texas Lottery Commission appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
BMM
BMM TESTLABS PROMOTES SACHA MCLAUGHLIN TO VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL QUALITY ASSURANCE

BMM Testlabs, the world’s original gaming test lab renowned for exceptional product compliance and certification services, today announced the promotion of Sacha McLaughlin to Vice President of Global Quality Assurance.
BMM’s President of Land-Based Gaming & Inspections, Kirk White, said, “Sacha has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, operational excellence, and a customer-first attitude. Her experience and passion will be critical as we continue to grow our QA services to meet the always-evolving needs of the global gaming industry.”
With over 18 years of experience in software implementation and seven years in the gaming industry, McLaughlin brings extensive knowledge of both agile and waterfall development methodologies, test planning, project management, and cross-regional team leadership. She is recognized for her ability to build and scale QA organizations that deliver quality, speed, and value to customers.
McLaughlin joined BMM in 2018 and has held roles of increasing responsibility within the Company, most recently serving as Senior Director of Quality Assurance. Throughout her tenure, she has been instrumental in expanding BMM’s QA capabilities and helping customers launch products into the global gaming market more quickly, with a focus on regulatory compliance, functionality, fairness, and security.
The post BMM TESTLABS PROMOTES SACHA MCLAUGHLIN TO VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL QUALITY ASSURANCE appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Central Europe
Change of Chairmanship in the GGL Board of Directors as of 1 July 2025

On the occasion of the four-year anniversary of the Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States (GGL) on 1 July 2025, Sandro Kirchner, State Secretary in the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior, for Sport and Integration, has taken over the chairmanship of the GGL Administrative Board, succeeding Reiner Moser, Head of Office in the Ministry of the Interior, for Digitalisation and Municipalities for Baden-Württemberg.
During Reiner Moser’s term as Chairman of the Board of Directors, the GGL further established itself as a reliable institution for the supervision and monitoring of the online gambling market.
“The online gambling market has developed rapidly in recent years. The GGL has met the resulting challenges with great commitment and can already demonstrate remarkable results both in combating illegal gambling and in regulating and supervising the legal market. The exchange between the states and the GGL is always trusting and results-oriented. I would like to sincerely thank the Board of Directors and all GGL employees for this constructive cooperation over the past year,” said Head of Department Moser.
State Secretary Kirchner takes over the chairmanship at a time when the GGL is pursuing ambitious goals, including stronger international networking, particularly to further curb the illegal gambling market.
“The consistent prosecution of illegal offerings and player protection are my highest priorities. The work of the GGL must continue to be significantly geared towards ensuring that the business model of illegal gambling is not profitable in Germany,” said Sandro Kirchner.
With regard to his role as Chairman of the Board of Directors, he added: “I look forward to continuing the successful work of everyone involved over the past four years. We will certainly continue to face many challenges. However, I believe the GGL is well positioned to achieve this.”
The Board of Directors is the supervisory and steering body of the GGL. It consists of the heads of departments or state secretaries of the ministries responsible for gaming supervision in the 16 member states. The chair of the Board of Directors rotates annually on July 1st in alphabetical order of the member states.
The post Change of Chairmanship in the GGL Board of Directors as of 1 July 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Australia
L&GNSW Launches Compliance Campaign

The Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&GNSW) has launched a compliance campaign focusing on external gambling signage and internal gambling related signage that is visible from the outside of the premises.
Inspectors will be engaging licensees and attending venues to assess compliance.
L&GNSW will be taking escalated enforcement action against any venue found not to be complying with the requirements.
From 1 December 2023, L&GNSW adopted a zero-tolerance enforcement approach regarding external gambling-related signage. This followed a compliance campaign which involved the removal of all external gambling related signage such as “VIP Lounge,” signage that includes dragon imagery or similar, and the removal of adopted imagery including images associated with gaming machines.
External gambling related signage at hotels and registered clubs are subjected to the requirements of sections 43 and 44 of the Gaming Machines Act 2001 NSW (the Act).
These requirements are in place to continue supporting gambling harm minimisation by reducing the visibility and promotion of gambling, particularly to vulnerable individuals and the broader community.
Venues that are not yet compliant should consult the 2023 Compliance Campaign: External gaming signage for hotels & clubs position paper or contact the Hospitality Concierge for additional information on the requirements.
L&GNSW recommends venues conduct self-audits to ensure their obligations and requirements in relation to the Act are met. A Gaming Harm Minimisation Fact sheet is also available.
Breaches of section 43(1) and 44(1) of the Act can result in on the spot fines of $1100 per offence or a maximum fine of $11,000 per offence if prosecuted.
The post L&GNSW Launches Compliance Campaign appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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