Wisconsin Constitution
Article IV - Legislative
Section 24 - Gambling.

1. Except as provided in this section, the legislature may not authorize gambling in any form.
2. Except as otherwise provided by law, the following activities do not constitute consideration as an element of gambling:
   1. To listen to or watch a television or radio program.
   2. To fill out a coupon or entry blank, whether or not proof of purchase is required.
   3. To visit a mercantile establishment or other place without being required to make a purchase or pay an admittance fee.
3. The legislature may authorize the following bingo games licensed by the state, but all profits shall accrue to the licensed organization and no salaries, fees or profits may be paid to any other organization or person: bingo games operated by religious, charitable, service, fraternal or veterans' organizations or those to which contributions are deductible for federal or state income tax purposes. All moneys received by the state that are attributable to bingo games shall be used for property tax relief for residents of this state as provided by law. The distribution of moneys that are attributable to bingo games may not vary based on the income or age of the person provided the property tax relief. The distribution of moneys that are attributable to bingo games shall not be subject to the uniformity requirement of section 1 of article VIII. In this subsection, the distribution of all moneys attributable to bingo games shall include any earnings on the moneys received by the state that are attributable to bingo games, but shall not include any moneys used for the regulation of, and enforcement of law relating to, bingo games.
4. The legislature may authorize the following raffle games licensed by the state, but all profits shall accrue to the licensed local organization and no salaries, fees or profits may be paid to any other organization or person: raffle games operated by local religious, charitable, service, fraternal or veterans' organizations or those to which contributions are deductible for federal or state income tax purposes. The legislature shall limit the number of raffles conducted by any such organization.
5. This section shall not prohibit pari-mutuel on-track betting as provided by law. The state may not own or operate any facility or enterprise for pari-mutuel betting, or lease any state-owned land to any other owner or operator for such purposes. All moneys received by the state that are attributable to pari-mutuel on-track betting shall be used for property tax relief for residents of this state as provided by law. The distribution of moneys that are attributable to pari-mutuel on-track betting may not vary based on the income or age of the person provided the property tax relief. The distribution of moneys that are attributable to pari-mutuel on-track betting shall not be subject to the uniformity requirement of section 1 of article VIII. In this subsection, the distribution of all moneys attributable to pari-mutuel on-track betting shall include any earnings on the moneys received by the state that are attributable to pari-mutuel on-track betting, but shall not include any moneys used for the regulation of, and enforcement of law relating to, pari-mutuel on-track betting.
6. 1. The legislature may authorize the creation of a lottery to be operated by the state as provided by law. The expenditure of public funds or of revenues derived from lottery operations to engage in promotional advertising of the Wisconsin state lottery is prohibited. Any advertising of the state lottery shall indicate the odds of a specific lottery ticket to be selected as the winning ticket for each prize amount offered. The net proceeds of the state lottery shall be deposited in the treasury of the state, to be used for property tax relief for residents of this state as provided by law. The distribution of the net proceeds of the state lottery may not vary based on the income or age of the person provided the property tax relief. The distribution of the net proceeds of the state lottery shall not be subject to the uniformity requirement of section 1 of article VIII. In this paragraph, the distribution of the net proceeds of the state lottery shall include any earnings on the net proceeds of the state lottery.
   2. The lottery authorized under par. (a) shall be an enterprise that entitles the player, by purchasing a ticket, to participate in a game of chance if: 1) the winning tickets are randomly predetermined and the player reveals preprinted numbers or symbols from which it can be immediately determined whether the ticket is a winning ticket entitling the player to win a prize as prescribed in the features and procedures for the game, including an opportunity to win a prize in a secondary or subsequent chance drawing or game; or 2) the ticket is evidence of the numbers or symbols selected by the player or, at the player's option, selected by a computer, and the player becomes entitled to a prize as prescribed in the features and procedures for the game, including an opportunity to win a prize in a secondary or subsequent chance drawing or game if some or all of the player's symbols or numbers are selected in a chance drawing or game, if the player's ticket is randomly selected by the computer at the time of purchase or if the ticket is selected in a chance drawing.
   3. Notwithstanding the authorization of a state lottery under par. (a), the following games, or games simulating any of the following games, may not be conducted by the state as a lottery: 1) any game in which winners are selected based on the results of a race or sporting event; 2) any banking card game, including blackjack, baccarat or chemin de fer; 3) poker; 4) roulette; 5) craps or any other game that involves rolling dice; 6) keno; 7) bingo 21, bingo jack, bingolet or bingo craps; 8) any game of chance that is placed on a slot machine or any mechanical, electromechanical or electronic device that is generally available to be played at a gambling casino; 9) any game or device that is commonly known as a video game of chance or a video gaming machine or that is commonly considered to be a video gambling machine, unless such machine is a video device operated by the state in a game authorized under par. (a) to permit the sale of tickets through retail outlets under contract with the state and the device does not determine or indicate whether the player has won a prize, other than by verifying that the player's ticket or some or all of the player's symbols or numbers on the player's ticket have been selected in a chance drawing, or by verifying that the player's ticket has been randomly selected by a central system computer at the time of purchase; 10) any game that is similar to a game listed in this paragraph; or 11) any other game that is commonly considered to be a form of gambling and is not, or is not substantially similar to, a game conducted by the state under par. (a). No game conducted by the state under par. (a) may permit a player of the game to purchase a ticket, or to otherwise participate in the game, from a residence by using a computer, telephone or other form of electronic, telecommunication, video or technological aid. [1963 J.R. 35, 1965 J.R. 2, vote April 1965; 1971 J.R. 31, 1973 J.R. 3, vote April 1973; 1975 J.R. 19, 1977 J.R. 6, vote April 1977; 1985 J.R. 36, 1987 J.R. 3, vote April 1987; 1985 J.R. 35, 1987 J.R. 4, vote April 1987; 1991 J.R. 27, 1993 J.R. 3, vote April 1993; 1997 J.R. 19, 1999 J.R. 2, vote April 1999]

The governor acted contrary to the public policy embodied in state law and therefore acted without authority by agreeing to an Indian gaming compact allowing the conduct of games prohibited by Art. IV, s. 24 and criminal statutes. Panzer v. Doyle, 2004 WI 52, 271 Wis. 2d 295, 680 N.W.2d 666, 03-0910.

The 1993 amendment to this section did not invalidate the original compacts between the state and Indian tribes. Because the original compacts contemplated extending and amending the scope of Indian gaming, the parties' right of renewal is constitutionally protected by the contract clauses of the United States and Wisconsin constitutions; and amendments to the original compacts that expand the scope of gaming are likewise constitutionally protected by the contract clauses of the Wisconsin and United States constitutions. Dairyland Greyhound Park, Inc. v. Doyle, 2006 WI 107, 295 Wis. 2d 1, 719 N.W.2d 408, 03-0421.

The state lottery board may conduct any lottery game that complies with the ticket language in constitution and ch. 565. The term “lottery" in the constitution and statutes does not include any other forms of betting, playing or operation of gambling machines and devices and other forms of gambling defined in ch. 945. The legislature can statutorily authorize other non-lottery gambling including casino-type games. 79 Atty. Gen. 14.

Under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, 25 U.S.C.A. ss. 2701-2721, gambling activities as defined and prohibited in ch. 945, other than lotteries and pari-mutuel on-track wagering, are not permitted by any person within or without Indian country in State of Wisconsin. The prohibition includes all non-lottery gambling such as casino-type games, gambling machines and other devices. The legislature can statutorily authorize non-lottery gambling within Indian country. 79 Atty. Gen. 14.

Enactment of legislation that would propose to license and regulate certain “amusement devices" that are gambling machines would authorize “gambling" in violation of Art. IV, section 24. OAG 2-96.

The state's interest in preventing organized crime infiltration of a tribal bingo enterprise does not justify state regulation in light of compelling federal and tribal interest supporting it. California v. Cabazon Band of Indians, 480 U.S. 202 (1987).

When voters authorized a state-operated “lottery" they removed any remaining prohibition against state-operated games, schemes, or plans involving prize, chance and consideration. Lac du Flambeau Indians v. State of Wisconsin, 770 F. Supp. 480 (1991).

Wisconsin cannot have it both ways. The state must entirely prohibit poker within its borders if it wants to prevent any Indian tribe from offering poker on the tribe's sovereign lands. When the state decriminalized hosting poker for taverns, it could no longer deny that game to tribes as a matter of federal law. Wisconsin v. Ho-Chunk Nation, 784 F.3d 1076 (2015).

Gambling and the law: The Wisconsin experience, 1848-1980. Farnsley, 1980 WLR 811.

Panzer v. Doyle: Wisconsin Constitutional Law Deals the Governor a New Hand. Wawrzyn. 89 MLR. 221 (2005).