Keno game draws opposition

ST. LOUIS -- Some lawmakers are beginning to question whether the Missouri Lottery Commission went too far when it approved a new quick-draw lottery game last month.

Opponents say Quick-Draw Lotto -- which is like the keno game in casinos -- is vastly different from weekly or even daily raffle-type games that voters envisioned when they authorized the lottery in 1984.

Beginning June 1, some bars, restaurants and fraternal clubs will sell tickets for the new game, which will feature computer-generated drawings every five minutes from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. Gov. Bob Holden proposed the game. It's part of his plan to find $177 million for public schools from gambling sources.

Rep. Pat Kelley, R-Lee's Summit, filed a bill Monday intended to stop the game until the Legislature can review it.

But he said Tuesday that a drafting error had targeted the bill at the Missouri Gaming Commission, which regulates casinos, instead of the Missouri Lottery Commission. The bill will be revised, he said.

Even so, there are legal questions about whether the bill could retroactively stop a game that already has been approved by the lottery, Kelley acknowledged.