BOISE - The director of the Idaho Racing Commission retired abruptly Friday amid controversy surrounding instant gaming machines that were legalized in Idaho in 2013.

Frank Lamb, who was formerly the director of Wyoming's Pari-mutuel Commission, had already announced plans in August that he intended to retire after the 2015 legislative session, according to Idaho State Police spokeswoman Teresa Baker.

"He was scheduled to retire in August," she said. "But he agreed to help us through the legislative session."

However, he decided on Friday to retire effective immediately.

Baker could not say if his early departure was related to controversies surrounding the instant horse racing machines.

Lamb, who has worked for the Idaho Racing Commission since 2012, testified last week in both the House and Senate State Affairs Committees in an attempt to codify rules that would clarify where historic horse racing machines would be allowed in the state.

Neither of the committees have acted on those rules, but instead lawmakers questioned Lamb about why the machines resemble video slot-machines that are illegal under Idaho's constitution.

The Senate State Affairs Committee took things one step further and unanimously agreed to introduce Senate Bill 1011, which was drafted by the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and simply says: "That Section 54-2512A, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby repealed."

Section 54-2512A is part of the 2013 law the Legislature passed in 2013 to allow pari-mutuel betting on historic horse races.

The Senate committee has yet to schedule a hearing on SB1011.

Meanwhile, Lamb is also drawing scrutiny from media and lawmakers after his employment as director of government and agency affairs at Wyoming Downs LLC, which also has a number of instant racing machines.

Coeur d'Alene city planner Jim Hammond, who is also on the Idaho Racing Commission, said Lamb decided to quit early because of an article in the Idaho Statesman newspaper questioning if Lamb had a conflict of interest.

Hammond said he did not view Lamb's activities in Wyoming as a direct conflict of interest, but either way, Lamb was on the way out anyway.

"He was scheduled to leave anyway, but he decided to leave early because of the article in The Statesman," Hammond said. "But that's fine because we already have the new guy hired."

Hammond said the commission will announce the new director once background checks are completed and a contract is signed.

The Idaho Statesman reported Wednesday that Lamb also lobbied the Wyoming Legislature on behalf of Wyoming Downs in 2013 to legalize the machines. That was the same year Idaho passed its instant racing law.

In 2004, while Lamb was the director of Wyoming's Pari-mutuel Commission, Wyoming's State Attorney General issued two rulings declaring instant racing machines as gambling devices that were prohibited by law.

Earlier this month the Coeur d'Alene Tribe signed a joint letter with three other tribes calling on Idaho's governor and attorney general to end instant gaming in Idaho.

The Post Falls Greyhound Park and Event Center is currently operating 35 instant gaming machines, which are currently under investigation by the Post Falls Police to determine if they are in fact legal.