The Texas Senate unanimously passed a bill on Thursday to ban courier services from helping customers buy lottery tickets. The move follows a controversial $83 million jackpot award. State Sen. Bob Hall,

But the present controversy over so-called lottery couriers appears to have struck a deeper chord because it raises questions over whether ordinary players have a fair shot at winning, and because the Legislature had largely been kept into the dark about the intricacies of courier companies' business practices.

On Thursday, the Texas Senate unanimously passed a bill to ban courier services from purchasing lottery tickets on behalf of customers. This legislation was prompted by a recent controversy surrounding an $83 million jackpot.

Hours later, the Senate State Affairs Committee unanimously advanced legislation that would take the ban one step further — making online lottery sales a criminal act. And in between those two actions,

An industry trade group said SB 28, which bans lottery courier companies, is an overreaction to comparatively rare practices within the industry.