Ruling by Justice Dept. opens a door on online gambling
2012 may the year of widespread Internet lottery ticket sales
The Justice Department has reversed its long-held opposition to many forms of Internet gambling, removing a big legal obstacle for states that want to sanction online gambling to help fix their budget deficits.
The legal opinion, issued by the department's office of legal counsel in September but made public on Friday, came in response to requests by New York and Illinois to clarify whether the Wire Act of 1961, which prohibits ...
Dec 25, 2011, 2:33 pm - Lottery News forum
Kentucky Pick 4 lottery players beat the house
Quad-zeros pay off big bucks for Pick 4 players
The Kentucky Lottery may have hit a streak of bad luck in November, which means good luck for lottery players in the state.
Kentucky Lottery chief financial officer Howard Kline said the payoff to Pick 4 players in November turned out to be far more than was taken in on the game.
Greg Harkenrider, one of the state's top budget experts, said Wednesday that revenue from the popular Pick 4 game plummeted in November because more people than e ...
Dec 22, 2011, 8:50 pm - Lottery News forum
State lotteries get creative to drive higher sales
The Arizona Lottery has spent four years ramping up efforts to get players to part with a dollar.
It raised its average jackpot by 8 percent and introduced pricier scratch-off games that cost from $5 to $20 but yield bigger winnings, up to $1 million. The tickets now come in brighter colors on thicker paper, and more of them get displayed in bigger cases to catch the eyes of would-be winners lining up at grocery and convenience stores. The lottery also increased its advertising budget by roug ...
Dec 12, 2011, 8:05 am - Lottery News forum
Arkansas Lottery forecasts $5M drop in scholarship money
Arkansas' lottery is on track to bring in roughly $5 million less for scholarships than last year, the games' interim director said Tuesday, as lawmakers prepare to consider whether to reduce the amounts of the scholarships next year.
Interim Lottery Director Julie Baldridge told the lottery's legislative oversight committee that the lottery is on track to raise $89 million for college scholarships for the fiscal year that began July 1. That's a drop from the $94.2 million the games raised in ...
Dec 7, 2011, 3:02 pm - Lottery News forum
Tenn. legislators float idea that lower prizes will bring in more money
Task force says 'bad idea'
Some Tennessee legislators are eying a reduction in prize payouts for Tennessee lottery players while letting them buy tickets with debit or credit cards.
The proposals are among ideas that are being floated as a way to generate more money that can be used for college scholarships.
Both were criticized at a meeting last week of the Senate Lottery Stabilization Task Force with a lottery official suggesting that a cut in prizes could be a bad business decision a ...
Oct 31, 2011, 7:38 pm - Lottery News forum
Tennessee Lottery raking in record profits
As annual sales approach $1.2 billion, players probably will see even more games
Despite the recession, one Tennessee financial institution is having a banner year.
The Tennessee Education Lottery is raking in record profits selling nearly $1.2 billion in scratch-off tickets, nightly drawings, and multi-state mega-jackpot games in its latest fiscal year.
While 17 other states' lotteries also hit all-time highs, the 7-year-old Tennessee lottery is growing faster than most, outpacing nati ...
Oct 9, 2011, 2:58 pm - Lottery News forum
Hoosier Lottery admits new office too lavish
Includes video report
Less than a week after an Indiana TV station broke the story that the Hoosier Lottery overpaid for new offices, lottery officials are making some changes. In a news conference Wednesday lottery officials admitted mistakes were made.
The Hoosier Lottery admits it did not follow state rules when it moved into a new multi-million dollar headquarters on Meridian Street.
The WTHR segment called 13 Investigates first exposed the lottery's fancy new offices and that inves ...
Oct 6, 2011, 6:56 am - Lottery News forum
New travel questions crop up in Ark. Lottery director's final days in office
Outgoing Arkansas Lottery Director Ernie Passailaigue gave his last scheduled report to state lawmakers today, as the lottery's internal auditor said new questions have arisen about Passailaigue's travel reimbursements.
Michael Hyde told the legislative committee that oversees the lottery today that he has referred to the Division of Legislative Audit a few things that came up.
It was of a nature that I felt like it needed to be investigated, he said.
Hyde mentioned the matter in answ ...
Oct 3, 2011, 1:24 am - Lottery News forum
Tenn. lawmakers float ideas to improve lottery revenues
Tennessee state Senate minority leader is calling on fellow lawmakers to find ways to increase lottery revenues instead of cutting back on the scholarship program, while Gov. Bill Haslam has assigned his staff to consider a broad range of options for stabilizing the game's finances.
Jim Kyle, D-Memphis, said in a letter released Wednesday that while the Tennessee Higher Education Commission estimates that the lottery will deplete its sizable reserves by 2024, it also says annual losses could ...
Sep 29, 2011, 9:36 am - Lottery News forum
Panel eyes less pay for next Ark. lottery chief
The Arkansas Lottery Commission hasn't begun its search for a replacement for outgoing Director Ernie Passailaigue, but the commission's chairman and a key legislative leader said Tuesday that whoever gets the job shouldn't expect the same paycheck.
A day after Passailaigue resigned, the lottery commission's chairwoman and the co-chairman of the lottery's oversight committee said they didn't expect the next director to enjoy the same high salary. Passailaigue's $324,000 annual pay, along with ...
Sep 20, 2011, 8:40 pm - Lottery News forum
