Latest news with #VCUCapitalNewsService
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Virginia Lottery set to lower disclosure amount for winners
Virginia Lottery offices in Richmond. (Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce for The Virginia Mercury) By Marlin Adams/VCU Capital News Service RICHMOND, Va. – Lawmakers this session voted to lower the Virginia Lottery disclosure amount to provide more privacy to big ticket winners. Del. Scott Wyatt, R-Mechanicsville, introduced House Bill 1799, which protects the personal information of $1 million or more lottery winners. Virginia Lottery winners are currently required to release personal information, including their name and photo, for any amount under $10 million. Forty-five states have lotteries, and 21 allow winners to stay anonymous, according to World Population Review, which tracks global population data and trends. Virginia requires the highest amount needed to stay anonymous. Those opposed to the bill believe the required disclosure adds needed transparency, while those in support cited examples of personal privacy breaches because of the current law. Megan Rhyne, executive director for the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, spoke against lowering the disclosure amount during the ABC-Gaming subcommittee meeting on Jan 14. The current law was established to promote the lottery and its winners; essentially for residents to see real Virginians winning real prizes, according to Rhyne. The current disclosure amount also supports state law that prevents Virginia Lottery board members, officers and employees from participating in the lottery, Rhyne said. This includes the purchase of tickets by any person residing in the same household of such a member. Disclosure can help prevent 'nefarious activities,' such as when a computer programmer working with the Multi-State Lottery Association rigged several lotteries and collected over $2 million in winnings, Rhyne said. Eddie Tipton pleaded guilty to rigging the lottery winnings in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, according to the Associated Press. He had help from his brother Tommy Tipton, a former Texas judge. The bill's sponsor told the House panel that a previous $1 million Virginia winner was the target of several scams, including on social media, after her identity was posted on the lottery's website. Virginia Lottery Executive Director Khalid Jones, spoke in support of Wyatt's bill. Any prize under $600 can be paid out at any participating lottery retailer. Anything over that limit, and winners are required to report it to the Virginia Lottery to claim the prize, according to Jones. The Virginia Lottery is responsible for verifying the identity and address of any winner over $600. 'We run those names through our internal system to ensure that they're not the members of the lottery playing themselves,' Jones said. This creates internal accountability, but FOIA gives the public a measure of external accountability, Rhyne said. Any winner whose prize value is $1 million or greater will not be disclosed through the Freedom of Information Act, which allows citizens to request the name, hometown and amount won of a lottery winner, according to the bill. That part of state law was previously set at $10 million or greater. Other U.S. states have varying disclosure amounts and rules. A handful of states do not allow any anonymity. In Michigan, players winning over $10,000 from in-state games are allowed to stay anonymous if they choose. In Florida, collecting any amount over $250,000 gives winners the option to have their personal information temporarily disclosed for 90 days after the winnings are collected. After 90 days their information is no longer private. Wyatt's bill sailed through the House with unanimous votes. Three Democrats and one Republican voted against it in the Senate. The bill currently sits with the governor, awaiting further action. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Virginia Lottery set to lower disclosure amount for winners
Virginia Lottery offices in Richmond. (Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce for The Virginia Mercury) By Marlin Adams/VCU Capital News Service RICHMOND, Va. – Lawmakers this session voted to lower the Virginia Lottery disclosure amount to provide more privacy to big ticket winners. Del. Scott Wyatt, R-Mechanicsville, introduced House Bill 1799, which protects the personal information of $1 million or more lottery winners. Virginia Lottery winners are currently required to release personal information, including their name and photo, for any amount under $10 million. Forty-five states have lotteries, and 21 allow winners to stay anonymous, according to World Population Review, which tracks global population data and trends. Virginia requires the highest amount needed to stay anonymous. Those opposed to the bill believe the required disclosure adds needed transparency, while those in support cited examples of personal privacy breaches because of the current law. Megan Rhyne, executive director for the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, spoke against lowering the disclosure amount during the ABC-Gaming subcommittee meeting on Jan 14. The current law was established to promote the lottery and its winners; essentially for residents to see real Virginians winning real prizes, according to Rhyne. The current disclosure amount also supports state law that prevents Virginia Lottery board members, officers and employees from participating in the lottery, Rhyne said. This includes the purchase of tickets by any person residing in the same household of such a member. Disclosure can help prevent 'nefarious activities,' such as when a computer programmer working with the Multi-State Lottery Association rigged several lotteries and collected over $2 million in winnings, Rhyne said. Eddie Tipton pleaded guilty to rigging the lottery winnings in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, according to the Associated Press. He had help from his brother Tommy Tipton, a former Texas judge. The bill's sponsor told the House panel that a previous $1 million Virginia winner was the target of several scams, including on social media, after her identity was posted on the lottery's website. Virginia Lottery Executive Director Khalid Jones, spoke in support of Wyatt's bill. Any prize under $600 can be paid out at any participating lottery retailer. Anything over that limit, and winners are required to report it to the Virginia Lottery to claim the prize, according to Jones. The Virginia Lottery is responsible for verifying the identity and address of any winner over $600. 'We run those names through our internal system to ensure that they're not the members of the lottery playing themselves,' Jones said. This creates internal accountability, but FOIA gives the public a measure of external accountability, Rhyne said. Any winner whose prize value is $1 million or greater will not be disclosed through the Freedom of Information Act, which allows citizens to request the name, hometown and amount won of a lottery winner, according to the bill. That part of state law was previously set at $10 million or greater. Other U.S. states have varying disclosure amounts and rules. A handful of states do not allow any anonymity. In Michigan, players winning over $10,000 from in-state games are allowed to stay anonymous if they choose. In Florida, collecting any amount over $250,000 gives winners the option to have their personal information temporarily disclosed for 90 days after the winnings are collected. After 90 days their information is no longer private. Wyatt's bill sailed through the House with unanimous votes. Three Democrats and one Republican voted against it in the Senate. The bill currently sits with the governor, awaiting further action. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Revamped invasive species bills head to governor for second time
Bettina ivy being sold in a retail store. Bettina ivy is the same as English ivy, an invasive plant on the bill's list of 39 species, but it is meant to be grown indoors. (Photo by Sarah Hagen / Capital News Service) By Sarah Hagen/VCU Capital News Service RICHMOND, Va. — Lawmakers recently sent the governor twin bills that he vetoed last year, which aim to protect the state's native wildlife by educating consumers on invasive plants. Del. Holly Seibold, D-Fairfax, introduced House Bill 1941 and Sen. Saddam Salim, D-Fairfax, introduced Senate Bill 1166. The bills, which passed with bipartisan support, require stores to post signage to educate shoppers on invasive species and encourage native plants as an alternative. Consumers are often unaware of the harm that these readily available plants can cause when introduced to local environments, according to Seibold. 'Not only do these invasive plants degrade Virginia's ecosystems, but they can also harm the infrastructure around us by clogging waterways and impeding power line access,' Seibold said in a subcommittee meeting. Christopher Leyen lobbied with Blue Ridge Prism, a nonprofit dedicated to invasive plant education, to get the bills passed. The main goal of the bills is to ensure consumers are aware of invasive plants and their impact beyond common knowledge, according to Leyen. 'It allows you to be thoughtful about how you use that plant,' Leyen said. 'Are you disposing of it properly? Are you planting it in ways that it's not going to spread?' Invasive species cost Virginia more than $1 billion a year, according to the Virginia Invasive Species Working Group. They cause the decline of native species by stealing necessary resources and habitats, and often spread quickly due to a lack of native predators. State group says Virginia should budget more for invasive species management Stores posting signage near invasive plants is an easy, cost-effective way to educate consumers on these effects, according to Leyen. 'What takes you pennies to implement saves thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars,' Leyen said. This is the second attempt by lawmakers to pass such legislation, after Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed both bills last year. Youngkin supported educating consumers on invasive species but was against the $500 fine enacted on businesses 'for the sale of plants with low levels of invasiveness,' according to his veto statement. The bills also overstepped the state's authority, he said. The current version of the bills removed the fine. The commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services would instead issue a stop-sale order on unlabeled plants, which would be lifted as soon as signage was placed. A smaller, more specific list of 39 invasive species was created from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation's established list of 103 species. It was developed to most effectively target invasive plants sold in stores, Leyen said. The list includes species such as the Bradford pear tree, periwinkle, fountain grass, English ivy and more. The state government already prohibits invasive species from being planted on state grounds, and commercial landscapers must notify landowners before planting them. These bills are merely closing the gap for retail customers, according to Leyen. The governor has until March 24 to approve, amend or veto legislation. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
