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Maine governor defends lottery capitalization planNews Story
Maine Gov. John Baldacci pointed to several other states that have swapped future revenue streams for up-front cash Monday as he defended his plan to capitalize up to $40 million a year in lottery revenues for $250 million in the upcoming budget.The Democratic governor fended off criticism of his plan to sell a decade s worth of Maine lottery revenues to the Maine State Retirement System or other investor. It would help the state to increase public school subsidies while balancing a $5.7 billion
Jan 11, 2005, 7:43 am - Lottery News

Maine lawmakers suspicious of plan to borrow against lottery fundsNews Story
The G-word, otherwise known as gimmick, was invoked frequently Thursday as lawmakers learned that Gov. John E. Baldacci plans to borrow against a portion of Maine's state lottery revenues to balance a $5.5 billion, two-year budget.Not entirely unlike the governor's decision to lease out the state's retail liquor operations for $125 million two years ago, Baldacci reportedly is planning on exchanging the state's proceeds from online games such as Powerball and Megabucks with a Wall Street broke
Jan 10, 2005, 12:54 pm - Lottery News

Maine to use lottery proceeds instead of raising taxesNews Story
Maine Governor John Baldacci may draw from future lottery proceeds and delay pension costs as part of his approach to financing a new two-year state budget without raising taxes. Baldacci may also seek approval for changing some benefit standards in the state Medicaid program, which is known as MaineCare, to help cover a budget gap of about $740 million.Aides shied away from details and emphasized that the forthcoming budget package was subject to change. But planning for a Friday release to th
Jan 6, 2005, 11:09 am - Lottery News

Maine Powerball sales strongNews Story
In a little less than 34 hours, Mainers gobbled up $536,191 worth of Powerball tickets to propel the state into the top three markets in the country for the game's Saturday night drawing.Pam Coutts, executive director of the Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations, said Monday that total sales for the new Powerball lottery game were actually $570,779, including tickets purchased for future drawings beyond Saturday's game. The huge response to the multimillion-dollar lottery game dis
Aug 3, 2004, 9:01 am - Lottery News

Powerball lottery tickets go on sale in MaineNews Story
Eric Moody used to go to New Hampshire to buy Powerball lottery tickets. Now he goes to his neighborhood store.On Friday, Moody was among the first people to buy Powerball tickets at Joe s Smoke Shop when they went on sale in Maine for the first time. Moody, 52, knows the odds of winning the jackpot are 120 million to 1, but he likes the huge payouts -- which can be 100 times higher, or even more, than the Tri-State Megabucks lottery. Set for life, right? The jackpot is $54 million this weekend,
Aug 2, 2004, 9:55 am - Lottery News

Maine gears up for PowerballNews Story
Powerball tickets go on sale in Maine on FridayBarbara Lawrence works the pizza and sandwich counter at the Randolph Takeout, a convenience store with just about everything -- cold beer, graham cracker pie crusts, breath mints for the dog, blood worms and, yes, lottery tickets.Lawrence and her customers have been talking for weeks about the next big item for sale -- Powerball lottery tickets. I've already told everybody that I'll be the first winner from Maine, said Lawrence, 57, who's worked a
Jul 26, 2004, 8:42 am - Lottery News

Drawing error leads lottery officials to pay on two numbersNews Story
It is the state lotterys equivalent of a poker dealer forgetting a few cards from the deck.A missing nine ball led to lottery officials honoring two winning numbers for yesterday afternoons Tri-State Pick 3 game. The first numbers drawn were 7-2-2. When the mistake was caught, officials drew again: 1-9-9.Unfortunately, we cant prepare for every circumstance or happenstance, said Maura McCann, a spokesman for the lottery who has been doing the evening drawing for 15 years. It is very infrequent,
Jul 7, 2004, 9:21 am - Lottery News

Governor Proposes Powerball for MaineNews Story
Saturdays Megabucks jackpot was $1.6 million. Soon jackpots will dwarf that if Maine joins the 24-state Powerball lottery game as proposed by Gov. John Baldacci.Stephanie Brown, assistant manager at Victor News on Park Street, cant wait. The jackpot for Wednesdays Powerball drawing is $79 million.We have many, many, many people who drive all the way to New Hampshire to buy Powerball tickets, Brown said. Youll hear some say, Do you want me to get you tickets? That bothers her. Were losing suppor
Mar 8, 2004, 4:56 am - Lottery News

Maine legislators back video gambling, PowerballNews Story
Efforts to expand gambling in Maine took a step forward Thursday when a legislative committee endorsed both a bill to let nonprofit groups offer video gambling and a proposal for the state to join the Powerball lottery.The Powerball and video-gambling proposals will now go to the full Legislature in January, prolonging a complex debate over gambling in Maine.The upcoming debate will pit supporters of the two plans against dissenting lawmakers and Gov. John Baldacci, who does not like either one
Nov 21, 2003, 4:52 am - Lottery News

$3.4M Ticket Hasn’t Been CashedNews Story
The sale of a winning Megabucks ticket worth $3.4 million at the Brooklin General Store in June continues to cause a stir. For many in Brooklin and neighboring towns, rumors about the possible winner have filled a void of official news from lottery headquarters in Augusta.For a time, anyone leaving town on vacation or driving home in a new car immediately became the latest rumored winner.Christine Royce, an official with the Maine State Lottery Commission, said a lawyer claiming to represent the
Aug 7, 2003, 4:17 am - Lottery News