Third-Quarter Lottery Revenue Continues Downward Trend With Jackpot Size

For the third quarter of fiscal year 2020, the Louisiana Lottery Corporation brought in nearly $123.9 million in revenue and transferred over $43.3 million to the state treasury, bringing total year-to-date contributions to more than $124.8 million. These figures are down 5.7% from the third quarter of last year and represent a $16 million decline year-to-date.

 

“Players have come to expect large, $400 million-plus Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots. Sales for these games were already down 30%-50% before the governor’s stay-at-home order due to a dearth of jackpots of this size over the last nine months,” explained Lottery President Rose Hudson. “The recent suspension of minimum starting jackpots for these multistate games has exacerbated this reality. The adjustments were necessary due to new, lower game participation levels amid nationwide COVID-19 stay-at-home orders, especially in hard-hit areas with large populations.”

 

While jackpot games sales are affected by the unpredictable nature of jackpot size, Hudson also noted that sales of the Lottery’s other games, such as scratch-offs, are doing quite well. For the first nine months of the fiscal year, scratch-off sales were up 4.1%. Scratch-offs account for about 49% of the Lottery’s total sales. 

 

With third-quarter revenue of $123,890,064, the Lottery contributed $43,361,520 to the state treasury. By law, at least 35% of Lottery proceeds are transferred to the state treasury and dedicated for K-12 public education. Roughly 53% of sales fund prizes and less than 6% is used to operate the Lottery. Since its inception in 1991, the Lottery has transferred more than $3.8 billion to the state.

 

Retailers earn 5.6% compensation on the sale of Lottery tickets, including commission, incentives for cashing winning tickets and bonuses for selling winning tickets. Together these earnings totaled more than $6.9 million for January through March of 2020. 

 

“Even during this public health crisis, the Louisiana Lottery is proud to be an important part of the state’s economy, contributing over $150 million each year to K-12 public education while providing compensation to 3,000 Louisiana convenience store chains, family-owned small businesses and grocery stores who sell our games, not to mention the support of local business and the Louisianians whom we employ,” Hudson added.

 

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.