Louisiana Lottery Exceeds Expectations With First Quarter Transfers Up $9 Million From Last Year

BATON ROUGE – Even without any sales boost from big multistate game jackpots, the Louisiana Lottery Corporation transferred more than $48 million to the state treasury for the first quarter of fiscal year 2021. That figure represents a jump of nearly $9 million from the first quarter last fiscal year and exceeds budgeted transfers by over $10 million or 26%.
 

“The Lottery couldn’t be more pleased with this strong start to our fiscal year. Although we have not experienced any of the large Powerball or Mega Millions jackpots that can drive up sales, our scratch-off games and daily games like Pick 3 and Pick 4 are seeing record growth,” reported Lottery President Rose Hudson. 
 

With revenue of $141,878,593, the Lottery’s total first-quarter state transfers were $48,084,335. Since the Lottery began operations in 1991, it has brought in more than $11.1 billion in revenue and transferred over $3.99 billion to the state treasury.
 

Local business who sell Lottery tickets are also seeing their compensation increase for the first quarter of the fiscal year. Retailer commission, incentives for cashing winning tickets and bonuses for selling winning tickets totaled more than $8 million for July through September of 2020. 
 

In 2020, state legislators reduced the percentage of revenue the Lottery is required to transfer, giving the corporation more flexibility with its game offerings and prizes structures. Utilizing improved prize payouts, the Lottery hopes to return even more net dollars to the state than in previous years, and it’s a strategy that appears to be working.
 

“We plan to build on this momentum and further engage new players that have recently tried our games,” said Hudson. “Our ultimate goal is to maximize revenue for K-12 public education. We look forward to the continued pursuit of that mission by introducing games that capture the imagination of our players and give them a reason to smile.”
 

Lottery ticket purchasers must be at least 21 years of age. Anyone with a gambling problem, or friends of anyone with a gambling problem, is encouraged to call toll-free 1-877-770-7867 for assistance. For security purposes, players should sign the back of their tickets after purchasing.
 

More information on the Louisiana Lottery can be found on its website www.louisianalottery.com/about, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/louisianalottery or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/LALottery.