The Texas Lottery almost died in the spring of 2025.
The lottery was saved by the Texas House during the waning days of the legislative session, but the whole operation is on probation.
Dallas Morning News Watchdog Dave Lieber has covered the lottery for eight years — with assistance from gadfly Dawn Nettles of Garland, who runs the respected LottoReport.com. Here are his stories.
April 13, 2017: Gotta lose to win: Texas lottery’s billion-dollar scratch-off asks more questions than it answers
Dec. 14, 2018: Here’s why the Texas Lottery’s Willy Wonka game and its promised $1 billion prize was a sham
March 21, 2019: Lottery watchdog claims the lottery director travels too much and spends state money unnecessarily
March 28, 2019: Is a new Texas lottery game deceptive? Does Texas do this purposely to get unclaimed prize money?
May 27, 2022: ’Watchdog Dave Lieber reports that one critic calls the new $20 Million Supreme game a ‘societal menace.'
April 27, 2023: Syndicates are spending millions of dollars on Texas’ lottery to beat out everyone else
Jan. 25, 2025: Former Texas Lottery Chief Gary Grief slammed in state report on leadership failures
Feb. 24, 2025: Is the Texas Lottery a conduit for money laundering? Some state senators say yes
June 4, 2025: Texas Lottery critic Dawn Nettles gets her due - and possibly a documentary deal.