Oregon is a genuinely confusing case. For years, pull tabs, known here as break-opens or Breakopens, were easy to find, sold as an Oregon Lottery game at bars and retailers statewide. The lottery discontinued that game, and Oregon's charitable-gaming law never allowed nonprofits to run pull tabs. On paper, that leaves Oregon without an authorized pull-tab game. In practice, though, pull tabs never fully disappeared from Oregon bars, which puts the state in an unusual gray area.
The official picture: no authorized pull tab
Two things have to line up for a state to have clearly-legal pull tabs: a channel that runs them and a law that allows it. Oregon has neither right now. The Oregon Lottery introduced pull-tab Breakopen games (its name for break-open pull tabs) in 1987 and sold them through its retailer network, then discontinued the line in 2009. Its instant game today is the Scratch-it, not a pull tab or break-open.
Separately, the Oregon Department of Justice regulates charitable gaming and limits it to bingo, raffles, and Monte Carlo (casino night) events. Its rules state plainly that the sale of pull tabs does not qualify as any of those and is not permitted. So there is no licensed charitable pull tab to replace the retired lottery game.
The reality: they never fully left the bars
Despite all of that, pull tabs never disappeared from Oregon taverns. Search for pull tabs in a city like Portland and you will find plenty of bars that list them, and locals will happily point you to their favorites. Whether any given spot still sells them, and on exactly what legal basis, varies and is not always clear.
The honest summary is that Oregon has no authorized pull-tab program today, but the game persists in some bars in a legal gray area. Some places may or may not still offer them, so treat it as the gray area it is. Nothing here is legal advice.
What else you can play
For clearly-legal instant gambling in Oregon, the Oregon Lottery runs Scratch-its, Keno, and Video Lottery (video poker and line games) at bars and taverns across the state, and tribal casinos offer full casino gaming under federal law. For a licensed, above-board charitable pull-tab deal like the ones in Minnesota or North Dakota, Oregon players cross a state line.
Where can I play pull tabs in Oregon?
Officially, Oregon has no authorized pull-tab game, but pull tabs still turn up in some Oregon bars, especially around Portland. Whether a given spot still sells them, and on what legal footing, varies.
Find a spot139 places to play pull tabs in Oregon