House Committee on Regulatory Reform members on Feb. 20 heard testimony on House Bill 4004, legislation that would allow winners of multistate lottery jackpots to remain anonymous in Michigan.

Representative Outman, the sponsor noted in his presentation, said the bill is a reintroduction of legislation he has sponsored in prior sessions and that 11 other states already protect the identity of winners in multistate games. "In the age of the Internet and social media, it has become increasingly easy to obtain access to somebody's personal information," the sponsor said, adding that public identification can produce fraud, harassment and physical-safety risks.

The sponsor described the measure as bipartisan and said prior versions passed the Michigan House by wide margins but stalled in the Senate. He presented the proposal as a safety and privacy measure and said states that have adopted similar protections did not see declines in lottery sales.

The Michigan Lottery filed a card with the committee stating a neutral position and did not request time to speak. The transcript records a single agency representative card: Mike Gallagher of the Michigan Lottery, listed as neutral and not wishing to speak.

Committee members did not vote on the bill during the hearing. The discussion was a presentation and question period only; no committee action or referral was recorded in the transcript.

Why it matters: Supporters said the change would reduce risks to individual winners and their families, while the committee must weigh privacy against traditional transparency for publicly run games. The committee scheduled additional items for the session but took no formal vote on HB 4004 during this meeting.

Details from the record: the chair introduced the bill for a presentation and the sponsor opened for questions; the Michigan Lottery was registered neutral. No amendments or fiscal details were presented on the record.

Next steps: The transcript records no committee vote or motion to report HB 4004 out of committee during this meeting.