Cuomo nixes anonymous lottery winner bill

ALBANY — A $500 million jackpot can get you a lot of things, but anonymity isn’t one of them.

Gov. Cuomo on Saturday announced he vetoed a bill that would have allowed lottery winners in New York to remain anonymous if they submitted a written request.

Under state law, winners in most cases must agree to be identified publicly.

A bill passed earlier this year by the state Legislature would have prohibited the state Lottery from identifying any holder of a winning lottery ticket if that person provided a written request.

Cuomo said that identifying winners serves a public purpose, including ensuring the public the games are on the up-and-up.

“The presentation and sharing of certain information provides comfort to the general public that there was an actual winner, and the state was not simply adding all the money to its own coffers,” Cuomo wrote in his veto message.

The governor added those wanting to remain anonymous under current law have the option of forming a limited liability company to collected the winnings for them.

Doing so “maintains accountability to the public while also allowing the individual to remain anonymous,” Cuomo wrote.