HARRISBURG — A key anti-gambling legislator has cautioned Gov. Tom Corbett against accepting a bid from a British firm to manage the $3.5 billion Pennsylvania Lottery without addressing lawmakers’ concerns.

Rep. Paul Clymer, R-Bucks, said in a letter to the Republican governor on Thursday that he is concerned that Camelot Global Services will usher in a gambling expansion that could hurt families, and added that such a gambling expansion requires lawmakers’ approval.

“There are enough dysfunctional families struggling in the commonwealth,” Clymer wrote in the letter, obtained by The Associated Press. “This proposal to extend gambling will only worsen this situation. Accelerating the privatization process will create more questions than answers.”

Until now, Republican lawmakers have been largely quiet about Corbett’s exploration of hiring Camelot Global Services on a 20- to 30-year contract to manage one of the nation’s largest lotteries. That has left the governor on his own to counter opposition from Democratic lawmakers and state Treasurer Rob McCord, and a lawsuit by the state employees’ labor union.

Bringing the process to a successful conclusion will be a key test on privatization for Corbett, who promised when he ran for governor that he would look to privatize state services.

Administration officials maintained Friday that they have the legal authority to expand lottery gambling, and Corbett says he will only hire Camelot if he believes the company will deliver stronger lottery profits than the state Department of Revenue employees who currently run it.

Just two states, Illinois and Indiana, have awarded contracts to privatize management of their lotteries.