Powers and duties of department.

The department shall:

(1) Have the authority to sue or be sued in the corporate name of the department and to adopt a corporate seal and symbol.

(2) Supervise and administer the operation of the lottery in accordance with the provisions of this act and rules adopted pursuant thereto.

(3) For purposes of any investigation or proceeding conducted by the department, have the power to administer oaths, require affidavits, take depositions, issue subpoenas, and compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, documents, and other evidence.

(4) Submit monthly and annual reports to the Governor, the Chief Financial Officer, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives disclosing the total lottery revenues, prize disbursements, and other expenses of the department during the preceding month. The annual report shall additionally describe the organizational structure of the department, including its hierarchical structure, and shall identify the divisions and bureaus created by the secretary and summarize the departmental functions performed by each.

(5) Adopt by rule a system of internal audits.

(6) Maintain weekly or more frequent records of lottery transactions, including the distribution of tickets to retailers, revenues received, claims for prizes, prizes paid, and other financial transactions of the department.

(7) Make a continuing study of the lottery to ascertain any defects of this act or rules adopted thereunder which could result in abuses in the administration of the lottery; make a continuing study of the operation and the administration of similar laws in other states and of federal laws which may affect the lottery; and make a continuing study of the reaction of the public to existing and potential features of the lottery.

(8) Conduct such market research as is necessary or appropriate, which may include an analysis of the demographic characteristics of the players of each lottery game and an analysis of advertising, promotion, public relations, incentives, and other aspects of communications.

(9) Adopt rules governing the establishment and operation of the state lottery, including:

(a) The type of lottery games to be conducted, except that:

1. No name of an elected official shall appear on the ticket or play slip of any lottery game or on any prize or on any instrument used for the payment of prizes, unless such prize is in the form of a state warrant.

2. No coins or currency shall be dispensed from any electronic computer terminal or device used in any lottery game.

3. Other than as specifically provided in s. 24.112, no terminal or device may be used for any lottery game which may be operated solely by the player without the assistance of the retailer.

(b) The sales price of tickets.

(c) The number and sizes of prizes.

(d) The method of selecting winning tickets. However, if a lottery game involves a drawing, the drawing shall be public and witnessed by an accountant employed by an independent certified public accounting firm. The equipment used in the drawing shall be inspected before and after the drawing.

(e) The manner of payment of prizes to holders of winning tickets.

(f) The frequency of drawings or selections of winning tickets.

(g) The number and type of locations at which tickets may be purchased.

(h) The method to be used in selling tickets.

(i) The manner and amount of compensation of retailers, except for the 2026-2027 fiscal year only, effective July 1, 2026, the commission for lottery ticket sales shall be 6 percent of the purchase price of each ticket sold or issued as a prize by a retailer. Any additional retailer compensation is limited to the Florida Lottery Retailer Bonus Commission program appropriated in Specific Appropriation 2888 of the 2026-2027 General Appropriations Act.

(j) Such other matters necessary or desirable for the efficient or economical operation of the lottery or for the convenience of the public.

(10) Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 286, have the authority to hold patents, copyrights, trademarks, and service marks and enforce its rights with respect thereto. The department shall notify the Department of State in writing whenever property rights by patent, copyright, or trademark are secured by the department.

(11) In the selection of games and method of selecting winning tickets, be sensitive to the impact of the lottery upon the pari-mutuel industry and, accordingly, the department may use for any game the theme of horseracing, dogracing, or jai alai and may allow a lottery game to be based upon a horserace, dograce, or jai alai activity so long as the outcome of such lottery game is determined entirely by chance.

(12) Have the authority to perform any of the functions of the Department of Management Services under chapter 255, chapter 273, chapter 281, chapter 283, or chapter 287, or any rules adopted under any such chapter, and may grant approvals provided for under any such chapter or rules. If the department finds, by rule, that compliance with any such chapter would impair or impede the effective or efficient operation of the lottery, the department may adopt rules providing alternative procurement procedures. Such alternative procedures shall be designed to allow the department to evaluate competing proposals and select the proposal that provides the greatest long-term benefit to the state with respect to the quality of the products or services, dependability and integrity of the vendor, dependability of the vendor’s products or services, security, competence, timeliness, and maximization of gross revenues and net proceeds over the life of the contract.

(13) Have the authority to acquire real property and make improvements thereon. The title to such property shall be vested in the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund. The board shall give the department preference in leasing state-owned lands under the board’s control and may not exercise any jurisdiction over lands purchased or leased by the department while such lands are actively used by the department. Actions of the department under this subsection are exempt from the time limitations and deadlines of chapter 253.

(14) Have the authority to charge fees to persons applying for contracts as vendors or retailers, which fees are reasonably calculated to cover the costs of investigations and other activities related to the processing of the application.

(15) Enter into contracts for the purchase, lease, or lease-purchase of such goods and services as are necessary for the operation and promotion of the state lottery, including assistance provided by any governmental agency.

(16) In accordance with the provisions of this act, enter into contracts with retailers so as to provide adequate and convenient availability of tickets to the public for each game.

(17) Have the authority to enter into agreements with other states for the operation and promotion of a multistate lottery if such agreements are in the best interest of the state lottery. The authority conferred by this subsection is not effective until 1 year after the first day of lottery ticket sales.

(18) Employ division directors and other staff as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this act; however:

(a) No person shall be employed by the department who has been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony committed in the preceding 10 years, regardless of adjudication, unless the department determines that:

1. The person has been pardoned or his or her civil rights have been restored; or

2. Subsequent to such conviction or entry of plea the person has engaged in the kind of law-abiding commerce and good citizenship that would reflect well upon the integrity of the lottery.

(b) No officer or employee of the department having decisionmaking authority shall participate in any decision involving any vendor or retailer with whom the officer or employee has a financial interest. No such officer or employee may participate in any decision involving any vendor or retailer with whom the officer or employee has discussed employment opportunities without the approval of the secretary or, if such officer is the secretary, without the approval of the Governor. Any officer or employee of the department shall notify the secretary of any such discussion or, if such officer is the secretary, he or she shall notify the Governor. A violation of this paragraph is punishable in accordance with s. 112.317.

(c) No officer or employee of the department who leaves the employ of the department shall represent any vendor or retailer before the department regarding any specific matter in which the officer or employee was involved while employed by the department, for a period of 1 year following cessation of employment with the department. A violation of this paragraph is punishable in accordance with s. 112.317.

(d) The department shall establish and maintain a personnel program for its employees, including a personnel classification and pay plan which may provide any or all of the benefits provided in the Senior Management Service or Selected Exempt Service. Each officer or employee of the department shall be a member of the Florida Retirement System. The retirement class of each officer or employee shall be the same as other persons performing comparable functions for other agencies. Employees of the department shall serve at the pleasure of the secretary and shall be subject to suspension, dismissal, reduction in pay, demotion, transfer, or other personnel action at the discretion of the secretary. Such personnel actions are exempt from the provisions of chapter 120. All employees of the department are exempt from the Career Service System provided in chapter 110 and, notwithstanding the provisions of s. 110.205(5), are not included in either the Senior Management Service or the Selected Exempt Service. However, all employees of the department are subject to all standards of conduct adopted by rule for career service and senior management employees pursuant to chapter 110. In the event of a conflict between standards of conduct applicable to employees of the Department of the Lottery the more restrictive standard shall apply. Interpretations as to the more restrictive standard may be provided by the Commission on Ethics upon request of an advisory opinion pursuant to s. 112.322(3)(a), for purposes of this subsection the opinion shall be considered final action.

(19) Adopt by rule a code of ethics for officers and employees of the department which supplements the standards of conduct for public officers and employees imposed by law.