SACRAMENTO - Officials with the California Lottery announced Tuesday that the Lottery is on pace to exceed last year’s sales record of $3.3 billion. This year, total sales for Lottery products will reach $3.6 billion by the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 2006. Director of Marketing, Jim Hasegawa, reported to Lottery commissioners on Tuesday that, “Lottery sales are strong and are continuing to trend upward in California.” Highlights from the presentation include:
- $114 million increase in Scratchers games (to date).
- $62 million increase in combined sales of MEGA Millions and Super LOTTO Plus (to date).
- $1.26 billion estimated total to public schools; an increase of $85 million over last year.
Lottery officials attribute the gain in Scratcher sales to the popularity of $5 games and extended play Scratchers games such as Crossword and Bingo that feature higher prize payouts. The increase in the sales of Lotto-type games can be attributed to the addition of MEGA Millions and eight jackpots in excess of $200 million since the launch of the game last June. Last year, the California Lottery generated more than $1 billion for California schools.