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Ohio Lottery's annual profit exceeds $1 billion for the second yearNews Story
The Ohio Lottery reported a $1 billion profit for the second year, bolstered by high sales of two games, Keno and EZPlay QuicKeno. Ticket sales of $3.05 billion were $59 million less compared to the last fiscal year, according to unaudited numbers for the year. But much of the prior fiscal year's increase was due to a record-setting $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot in January 2016. Financial details will be presented today at the lottery commission meeting. By law, all lottery profits go
Jul 17, 2017, 9:22 am - Lottery News

State lotteries losing revenue to 'jackpot fatigue' and casinosNews Story
The biggest loser in the lottery game? Increasingly, it's the states that rely on lottery revenue, as fewer people are buying tickets of chance. In 22 of the 44 states with lotteries, revenue declined between 2014 and 2015, the most recent year for comprehensive data, the Pew Charitable Trusts reported Thursday. Twenty-one states experienced declines from 2013 to 2014. In 2016, lottery revenue fell 3.3% in Missouri, more recent data shows, while it fell 3.2% in Rhode Island and 2.6% in Wes
Jul 14, 2017, 11:02 am - Lottery News

Illinois lost $4 million by halting Powerball, Mega Millions salesNews Story
llinois lost nearly $4 million by shutting down Powerball and Mega Millions ticket sales because of the state budget impasse, a lottery official said Friday. Lottery chief of staff Jayme Odom said the state lost about $2.4 million in revenue from Powerball and $1.5 million from Mega Millions during the ticket-sales hiatus. She said it's unclear whether sales have recovered since they were reintroduced Thursday night. Late last month, the lottery announced it would halt sales of Powerball a
Jul 10, 2017, 8:40 am - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery resumes selling Mega Millions, Powerball ticketsNews Story
By Todd Northrop The Illinois Lottery has resumed sales of Mega Millions and Powerball tickets now that the state's budget stalemate has concluded, lottery officials said. The state stopped sales late last month of the popular Powerball and Mega Millions games due to its inability to contribute to the prize pool without a budget in place. Illinois Lottery Acting Director Greg Smith announced Thursday night that sales have resumed. The Illinois Lottery is pleased to announce that sal
Jul 7, 2017, 10:42 am - Lottery News

New York seizes $20 million in lottery prizes from people on public assistanceNews Story
New York state has reclaimed nearly $20 million in lottery prizes since 2013 from winners who had received public assistance in the last 10 years. The little-known program, one of the toughest of its kind in the country, has grabbed back prizes from an estimated 30,000 winners in the last four years. At least six other states have similar programs, but New York is the only state that seizes prizes of those on public assistance, experts said. Other programs take back unpaid child support pa
Jul 5, 2017, 9:27 am - Lottery News

Oklahoma Lottery boosts prizes to lure back playersNews Story
Oklahoma lottery officials are rolling out a new series of games after lawmakers restructured the system this year. The state lottery, which has seen diminished participation with its scratch-off cards in recent years, is now able to increase prize amounts. As participation dwindled, officials had to shrink prize amounts because state law required that at least 35 percent of all proceeds be diverted to the Education Trust Fund. In 2013, the Lottery lowered payouts so it could comply with t
Jul 5, 2017, 7:48 am - Lottery News

Maine loses Powerball, Mega Millions during state closureNews Story
After Saturday night, Maine residents will not be able to purchase some multi-state lottery games, such as Powerball and Mega Millions, until the state shutdown ends, state officials announced Saturday. At convenience stores in Portland on Saturday, a bright red screen flashed with Breaking News near cash registers, letting customers know that they had until 9:30 p.m. to purchase Hot Lotto tickets and 9:50 p.m. to buy Powerball tickets. Mega Millions and Lucky for Life stopped being sold on F
Jul 2, 2017, 9:12 am - Lottery News

N.J. Lottery remains operational during state closureNews Story
By Todd Northrop Even though the New Jersey state government has closed due to a budget impasse, the state lottery remains fully operational. During the closure, the sale of all games offered by the New Jersey Lottery will remain available for purchase. The game drawings for all online games offered through the Lottery, including Pick 3, Pick 4, Jersey Cash 5, Pick 6, 5 Card Cash, and Cash4Life, will be conducted, posted on Livestream and aired on television, PHL17 and PIX11, as per sta
Jul 1, 2017, 12:23 pm - Lottery News

Washington Lottery to shut down if lawmakers can't agree on budgetNews Story
Winners will be unable to claim prizes during shutdown Washington's Lottery will suspend all operations if lawmakers can't pass the state's operating budget by midnight on Friday, June 30, 2017. That means no Lottery tickets will be sold, and no winning tickets will be redeemed in the state of Washington for any game until the shutdown is over. This includes Scratch games, jackpot games and multi-state jackpot games such as Powerball and Mega Millions. Washington's Lottery will also
Jun 30, 2017, 8:01 am - Lottery News

Iowa Lottery promises to work harder to stop cheatersNews Story
Iowa Lottery officials pledged Tuesday to tighten security of lottery tickets and bolster efforts to obtain restitution from persons convicted of lottery-related crimes. The officials detailed their plans at a meeting of the Iowa Lottery Board in Clive, where they responded to allegations that security problems persist in the state-run lottery because of a failure to fix weaknesses spotted years earlier. A recent investigation detailed cases of Iowa retail employees stealing lottery ticke
Jun 28, 2017, 8:26 am - Lottery News