The recent controversies surrounding the lottery have dampened the prospects of Texas casino gambling and sports betting.

If Texas can’t operate a lottery without allegations of mismanagement and corruption, the thinking goes, then how can it handle the complexities surrounding casinos and betting platforms?

Even the most ardent supporters of expanding gambling have discussed the damage the lottery controversy has done to dreams of resort-styled casinos, including a Dallas palace that would include shops, restaurants and — perhaps — the Dallas Mavericks.

“Boy, y’all are sure muddying the waters for some of us who try to expand gaming in this state,” state Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, said during a recent Senate Finance Committee hearing where Texas Lottery officials were heavily criticized for allowing couriers to broker online and mobile ticket requests. Texas law prohibits online or telephone sales of lottery tickets.

In the past month, lawmakers have taken action to reign in the lottery, including advancing a bill that prohibits the use of couriers. The Texas Rangers and attorney general’s office also are investigating a $95 million jackpot in 2023 and a $83.5 million win last month.

One anti-gambling lawmaker has authored a bill to get rid of the lottery. If approved, the $2 billion a year the lottery provides for public education and veterans assistance would be covered in other areas of the state budget. Other Texas lawmakers, including Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood, have publicly questioned whether the lottery should exist.

The timing of it all couldn’t be worse for casino gambling and sports betting — already longshots for passage this session. Lottery troubles could mean further delays — if not the outright suspension — of plans to expand Texas gambling.

“The Lottery Commission mess is likely the final nail in the coffin for gambling legislation in 2025,” said Mark Jones, a political scientist and pollster at Rice University. “It raises serious concerns about the ability of the state to regulate the far more lucrative industries of casino gambling and online sports betting.”

Bills in the Texas House would allow Texas voters to approve casino gambling and sports betting in a November election, with future sessions of the Legislature to work out licenses and other details.

Though gambling expansion gained momentum in the 2023 legislative session, the issue hasn’t been a priority in the current session, which is about a third of the way finished.

The biggest roadblock is the Texas Senate, where casino gambling and sports betting bills did not get a hearing in 2023. The Senate snub occurred after the Texas House approved legislation that included a public referendum on sports betting.

Patrick, the Senate’s presiding officer, said there was not enough GOP Senate support for casino gambling or sports betting. It’s a stance he maintains for this session as well.

The lieutenant governor and the Senate have been driving the criticism of the Texas Lottery. Last week, the Senate voted 31-0 to pass the bill banning the use of courier services that facilitate the sale of Texas Lottery tickets.

With senators on a crusade against management of the lottery, it’s unlikely they would want to introduce other forms of gambling that would be more complicated to oversee and regulate.

“Lt. Gov. Patrick already had his doubts about the state’s ability to prevent criminal elements from becoming involved in casino gambling in Texas, and those doubts are likely even stronger after the Lottery Commission’s series of debacles,” Jones said.

Even more troublesome, a 2023 bill to allow sports betting would have leaned on the Texas Lottery Commission to regulate the industry.

“The most expeditious way to legalize sports wagering in this state and to strictly regulate this activity is to utilize the resources of the Texas Lottery Commission,” according to the 2023 bill that passed the House.

Talk about bad luck for sports betting proponents.

There’s even a chance that the lottery won’t survive.

State Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Prosper, has a bill that would abolish lottery games, which were established under Gov. Ann Richards.

Other lawmakers don’t want Texas in the gaming business.

“The idea that we make the state of Texas the biggest bookie in the state is fantastical and absurd,” said state Rep. Brian Harrison, R-Midlothian.

There’s a lesson to be learned from the lottery controversy.

Mike Lavigne, an Austin-based gambling consultant, said proponents need to show that any expansion of gambling would be tightly regulated. He added that advocates should work with the Department of Public Safety and others to drive out illegally gambling activities already taking place in Texas, including bootleg slot facilities.

“The lottery controversy solidifies the fact that we have to have a very strict regulatory environment around any kind of new gambling,” Lavigne said. “And it has to be taken very seriously, if we expect the citizens of Texas to accept any kind of expansion of the gambling footprint.”