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Illinois to fire private lottery operatorNews Story
The bumpy marriage between the state and the private company that operates the Illinois Lottery is ending in a divorce. Gov. Pat Quinn's office confirmed to me today that it is ending its contract with Northstar Lottery Group LLC to operate the $2 billion-a-year lottery system, seven years earlier than scheduled. It is not yet certain whether the separation will be voluntary by both parties, but a decision to end the contract has been made. The governor's office has directed the lotter
Aug 23, 2014, 10:20 pm - Todd - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery private manager still on job after firingNews Story
Finding a new lottery manager proves tricky for state government When Illinois lawmakers voted in 2009 to hire a private company to run the state's $2 billion-a-year lottery, they had high hopes of making more money that could be funneled into education and construction projects. Then the company missed sales goals, and two governors tried to fire Northstar Lottery Group. But Northstar remains on the job more than two years later, and the firm is now able to collect millions of dollars mor
Mar 28, 2017, 4:21 pm - Todd - Lottery News

Lawsuit alleges Illinois lottery contractor cheated players, vendorsNews Story
A company hired to manage the Illinois Lottery cheated players and lottery vendors by misrepresenting the odds of winning scratch-off games, a class-action lawsuit in federal court alleges. The case, originally filed last month in St. Clair County Court, was removed last week to federal court in the Southern District of Illinois. The lead plaintiffs are Raqqa Inc., which operates Fairview Lounge, a bar, convenience mart and gas station at 10610 Lincoln Trail in Fairview Heights; and Michael C
Mar 13, 2017, 8:07 am - Todd - Lottery News

Audit: Illinois Lottery broke law to get around budget impasseNews Story
Eleven months ago, just as the state budget impasse was about to take hold, the Illinois Lottery violated state finance law by prepaying $20 million to take part in future multi-state lottery games, according to an Auditor General's report. Lottery officials made the prepayment because they were worried that a budget stalemate could prevent the state from participating in the Multi-State Lottery Association's future Powerball and Mega Millions games, according to the audit. The state's Lot
May 21, 2016, 5:14 pm - Todd - Lottery News

Illinois lottery winners file class-action lawsuit against stateNews Story
Includes video report Rhonda Rasche had a great plan for the $50,000 she won from a scratch-off Illinois Lottery ticket. She wanted to help her best friend cope with the loss of her mother. I wanted to take her and her sister on a trip because they were doing at-home hospice for her, and it was pretty tough on all of them emotionally [and] physically, said Rasche, 48, of Homer Glen. She never made that trip. Instead, Rasche became one of two plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit file
Sep 10, 2015, 8:59 am - Todd - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery run by private company starting FridayNews Story
Illinois' private lottery manager takes over operations Friday, with both the company and the state envisioning greatly increased sales and more money for state coffers. Although Northstar Lottery Group formally assumes the reins July 1, the transition to private management has been under way for some time. Regular players have seen new signage and the rollout of new games in recent weeks, but otherwise shouldn't notice a difference if they buy lottery tickets after the first of the month.
Jun 30, 2011, 8:21 am - Todd - Lottery News

Details of new Illinois Lottery manager deal kept secretNews Story
As the Illinois Lottery edges closer to finalizing a massive deal with a new private manager, the state and the firm have chosen to keep many of the details secret despite past pledges of transparency. The deal includes a tiered incentive system in which the new firm, Camelot Illinois, would be paid bonuses for exceeding various profit levels, documents show. But the proposed dollar amounts are not included. That was among the few bits of information in the heavily redacted records the sta
Oct 4, 2017, 9:01 am - Todd - Lottery News

Northstar fights to keep Illinois lottery documents secretReply
At a hearing before the Illinois Court of Claims, Northstar Lottery Group argued today that lottery officials have no duty to release a marketing study and a business plan even though the Illinois Attorney General has advised the documents should be made public. Oh boy, what did you expect! Those are documents that public state lotteries publish and release all the time. But now you're dealing with a private company, and they want to keep their secrets. So you got this half-half public
Apr 15, 2014, 9:40 am - Jon D - Lottery News

Report: Ill. lottery manager short $100M on profitNews Story
The Illinois Lottery's private manager fell nearly $100 million short of the profits it promised to deliver for the state. But the Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday that revenues generated by Northstar Lottery Group still set an Illinois record. Illinois has fallen behind other state lotteries for years. Northstar promised $825 million in net revenue when it took over the lottery in July 2011. A Tribune analysis found it had collected $726 million by the end of June. That could mean hund
Aug 2, 2012, 9:34 am - Todd - Lottery News

Taxpayers pay millions in bonuses to outgoing lottery firm's staffNews Story
Illinois taxpayers have funded about $2 million in retention bonuses for employees of a private firm managing the lottery despite the firm performing so poorly Illinois is working to replace it. A Tribune investigation has found the state approved paying bonuses as part of a complicated deal it struck in 2015 with the firm, Northstar Lottery Group. Northstar agreed to end its 10-year deal early if the state met a host of conditions, including paying Northstar disentanglement fees, which inclu
Mar 29, 2017, 9:21 am - Todd - Lottery News