If this passes I'm sure more states will soon follow.

More than once I've changed my mind about buying tickets because it will start to rain or I just don't want to go out in the cold.

I like the idea of being able to use a debit card too.

Yep.  I live in NJ, and the day after Christmas my number came up, which I was going to put 5 times straight/box, but it was snowing.

But, I hadn't thought of the fact that quite a few times I go and get a couple tickets and coffee - and they make more money off the coffee.  Even if I bought $10 worth of tickets.

"If someone buys a couple of dollar tickets and a cup of coffee for $1.50, I just made a buck. I made a buck on the coffee and 5 cents on the lottery ticket," he said.

Maybe he will reduce the price of a cup of coffee and his customers will come in for the coffee and buy some lottery tickets while they are there.

Excellent Idea RJ......more traffic......more money.....fresher coffee.....and maybe a doughnut counter for more profit!!! ....beaudad...

I can see both view-points, I'd love to buy my tickets in the comfort of my own home, but I would still have to go to a store or gas station to cash in the winning tickets under 5 hundred.

I would still get stuff like pop or milk with my winnings, when I win I tend to spend more on extras as opposed to when I  am buying tickets.

or maybe the question should be how do you cash in a ticket you purchase on line...?

Will the banks allow for the online gambling?  As it stands now it is very difficult to charge any online gambling because it is illegal. Should this measure pass then the banks are going to have to rewrite their rules.

Who will get the bonus if the winning ticket is purchased online? The Lottery Commission? Who?

Will there be an extra fee charged by the bank or the Lottery Commission for doing this transaction online?

Does this mean the ban on online gambling in the United States will be lifted so that the consumer can choose the type of online gambling he/she prefer to indulge in?

How will these tickets be printed out and verified should something happen to them?

Will retailers honor these tickets when it is time to cash them in, since they will probably be printed on regular paper?

If someone hacks my computer or the Lottery Commission's system and steals a winning ticket, how will I prove that I purchased the winning ticket and not the thief?

N.J. was also the first in the nation to raise tax rates on lotto winnings to 11 percent. What other firsts will be in store for N.J?

a few of my states have online lotto ticket purchases. they pay either via check, direct bank deposit or  deposit into your online account for future purchases

Ukrainian National Lottery already has option that allow to buy lottery tickets online. And also we can print these tickets into a paper when it's have a winning combination. National Lottery has four games to play, but online we have 6/52 Superloto, 5/42 Loto Maxima, and 10/20/80 Keno game. But most popular is a usual way to play in lottery is through lottery terminals.

The way to pay for these online tickets is bank deposit card, electronic money.

Players won't be able to buy scratch-offs online and those sales are over 50% of all lottery revenues, but the store owners will lose some money from players that buy other items. How much they lose will depend on how many players decide to play online.

Good point ca-dreamin*. I'll be happy when other States pick this up and run with it.

I seem to have a little more luck with other State lotteries than Maryland's.

I hope other states will consider across State-lines profits that could be obtained from online playing.

if i was a retaile ri would want the comissons t go up, 5c a sale  sheesh and the lotto ofice is planning on taking a chunck back form the retailers. basically in competition with the retailers. sure i have no alleigence with retailers, and would shop online for my purchases the moment it comes in her ein my state. but then i am not a retailer, and i didnt pay for a terminal to be installed in my store.

While that would be convenient, I would be worried about making it easier for compulsive gamblers  to drain their bank accounts over a big jackpot.

OK I like this! Imagine purchasing online and then getting paid directly into your account without ever leaving home : )

When I buy lottery tickets either from the gas station or 7 Eleven I don't buy anything else. (I buy my gas from the city I work in. It's cheaper than Chicago) If I decide to buy tickets from the self-serve machine at the grocery store  I make other purchases but that's why I'm there to begin with.