Texas lottery panel will consider dismissing director
The three-person panel that oversees the Texas Lottery Commission will meet behind closed doors Monday to decide whether the agency's executive director should be fired for inflating the advertised jackpots for the popular Lotto Texas game.Lottery Commission Chairman C. Thomas Clowe said Tuesday that he could not comment on the matter. But in two public meetings in less than a week, Clowe has harshly criticized Executive Director Reagan Greer, saying that he had deceived the lottery-playing publ ...
Jul 6, 2005, 8:51 am - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery chief may lose job over jackpot snafu
The Texas Lottery Commission's executive director may lose his job and six other employees may be reassigned following revelations that the agency inflated jackpot estimates, according to a posted agenda.Commissioners may meet in executive session July 11 to deliberate the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline or dismissal of executive director Reagan Greer, the agenda posted Friday states.The notice also indicates the commission may discuss the reassignment of ...
Jul 2, 2005, 11:51 pm - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery executive had no hint before firing
Weighing his words carefully when asked if he was the fall guy in the growing scandal over inflated Texas Lotto jackpots, Lee Deviney said only that his dismissal last month from the Texas Lottery Commission came with no prior warning. In any job you have good days and bad, but the majority of time I felt (my bosses) were happy with me, Deviney said by telephone Thursday while vacationing with his family in Colorado.Happy enough, he said, that he was awarded a 4 percent raise last October and a ...
Jul 1, 2005, 10:30 am - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery chief could face punishment for inflated jackpots
The Texas Lottery Commission chairman laid blame for inflated lottery jackpots squarely on the agency's chief Wednesday, hinting to state lawmakers that executive director Reagan Greer could be punished.Chairman C. Tom Clowe was asked by members of the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee who specifically had deceived lottery players by advertising phony estimated jackpots four times since last fall.Mr. Clowe answered: The person who made the decision [to sign off on the esti ...
Jul 1, 2005, 9:42 am - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery officials testify that public was deceived
Texas Lottery Commission Chairman C. Thomas Clowe told lawmakers Wednesday that the public was deceived by recently inflated jackpot estimates and vowed the agency would take action to keep it from happening again.Clowe said lottery Executive Director Reagan Greer was responsible for the deception but declined to say if he should be fired. This was a deception, and it was wrong, said Clowe, who opened nearly four hours of testimony on the inflated jackpots before the House Licensing and Adminis ...
Jun 30, 2005, 12:30 pm - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery Whistleblower Fired
The scandal embroiling the Texas Lottery Commission over inflated jackpot estimates intensified Wednesday when top agency officials acknowledged firing a colleague who only days earlier warned ticket sales would fall short of advertised amounts.Mike Fernandez, the commission's administrator, called horrendous the timing of the dismissal of Lee Deviney, the agency's chief financial officer.But he denied there was any connection between Deviney's firing and an e-mail Deviney sent his superiors l ...
Jun 30, 2005, 11:54 am - - Lottery News forum
Texas lawmakers to grill lottery officials about inflated jackpots
Texas lottery officials could face tough questions and some nasty wrist-slapping today when they testify before lawmakers about inflating several Texas Lotto jackpot estimates.But they would face more scrutiny under a bill filed Tuesday that forces the lottery to comply with laws against deceptive trade practices.Sen. Jane Nelson said recent revelations that lottery officials advertised bigger jackpots than they could afford to pay out jeopardize the integrity of the game and the government that ...
Jun 29, 2005, 5:36 pm - - Lottery News forum
Texas Lottery chief admits jackpots were inflated
[Editor: After reading the story, be sure to watch the video report that follows, which provides interesting interviews of the key individuals in this report.]If you've been playing Texas Lotto lately, you may have been playing for less than you thought.Texas Lottery officials admitted Friday they inflated their jackpot numbers on four separate occasions. I will be studying it very closely and clearly to be sure this doesn't happen again, Texas Lottery Commission Executive Director Reagan Greer ...
Jun 27, 2005, 12:26 pm - - Lottery News forum
Wisconsin couple to be investigated for excessive lottery wins
A state lawmaker has asked for an audit to determine how a Bonduel, Wisconsin couple won three dozen second-chance state lottery drawings since 2000.In 5½ years, Jeffrey B. and Lisa M. Hintz have won more than $40,000 in second-chance drawings, including $5,000 from five consecutive weekly drawings this March and April.Since 2000, they've won another $26,000 from scratch-off tickets, other lottery games and the lottery's since-canceled television game show. In all, they have collected mor ...
May 12, 2005, 10:10 am - - Lottery News forum
'Prize closet' for Illinois Lottery employees discovered
The Illinois Lottery solicited donations of MP3 players, airline ticket vouchers, video game systems and other goodies from radio and television stations it advertised with, then used the items to create a prize closet for lottery employees, a state audit revealed on Wednesday. During this engagement it came to our attention that the Lottery has operated a 'prize closet' dating back to 1989 and possibly longer, said Auditor General William Holland's report.According to the audit, a letter sol ...
May 6, 2005, 10:05 am - - Lottery News forum
