Lawmakers in Montana are raising questions about why the state’s lottery director, Bob Brown, is refusing to provide auditors access to certain emails related to a contract with Intralot, a gambling technology supplier, according to The Independent Record.

Intralot, a company based in Greece that operates games like Montana Millionaire and Montana Sports Bet, secured a new seven-year contract with the Lottery last year.

However, this deal only took place after lawmakers pressured the agency to open the contract to competitive bidding instead of direct negotiations with Intralot.

Under the previous contract, Intralot received 8% of gambling sales from the products it operated. When the company proposed to extend its relationship with the Lottery, it did so without reducing that rate.

After facing funding threats from lawmakers demanding a competitive bidding process, Intralot ultimately won the procurement with a 5.05% rate.

According to state auditors, this competitive process is expected to save Montana around $17.6 million over the seven-year contract period.

‘Sweetheart Deal’ Concerns

Controversy arose after the Montana Lottery Commission unanimously voted in September 2024 to open the contract for bidding, but Brown paused the process to consider Intralot’s unsolicited offer.

This led members of the citizen commission to question whether a special deal was being negotiated for the current supplier.

Despite defending his decision as being in the best interest of Montana, Brown is now under scrutiny following a Legislative Audit Division review that raised transparency questions surrounding the negotiations.

During the audit, auditors requested access to Brown’s emails to investigate potential conflicts of interest in the contracting process. Brown refused to provide some emails labeled confidential or privileged by attorneys.

The audit also pointed out that the Department of Administration and Gov. Greg Gianforte’s office limited access to information.

Senator Tom McGillvray accused the Lottery of hindering auditors’ efforts to assess the transparency and accountability of the process during a Legislative Audit Committee hearing, as reported by the Record.

Although Brown disclosed most of his emails, he refused to share communications marked confidential or privileged by legal counsel.

Origin of Offer Unclear

Auditors could not determine how Intralot’s unsolicited proposal came about. Lottery officials stated they could not recall details of how the offer was received outside the competitive procurement process.

Furthermore, Intralot did not participate in public hearings on the matter through company representatives or its registered Montana lobbyists.

It is important to note that neither Brown nor Intralot have been accused of corruption.