Lottery officials are considering allowing debit cards that are protected with a personal identification number to be used to buy tickets from the 350 machines it has in grocery stores and other establishments. The proposal reflects consumers' increasing reliance on cards and decreasing reliance on on cash to make their ticket purchases, said Jeff Anderson, the Idaho Lottery's executive director.
Customers can already use several forms of payment, including debit and credit cards, to buy lottery tickets at a store counter. But the lottery machines — called player activated terminals — accept only cash.
The proposal would allow you to continue to buy up to $100 of lottery tickets at the machines if you use cash. For debit cards, the limit would be $50 to encourage responsible playing, Anderson said. The average lottery ticket sale is just over $3.
The lottery proposes to charge you a 50-cent fee each time you use a debit card in its machines. That would cover the cost of swipe fees ticket sellers must pay on purchases made by card, Anderson said.
If the lottery adopts the rule, it will still need to pass muster at the Idaho Legislature during the next session.
http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/08/06/2219477/idaho-lottery-considers-taking.html
