The Iowa Lottery set a record for sales in the fiscal year that ended June 30th, with sales of 481-point-five million dollars. Iowa Lottery C-E-O Mat Strawn started the fiscal year with concerns as the flagship scratch ticket sales had dropped.
Strawn says some big lotto ticket jackpots were one factor in pushing them to a record.
He says the promotions at the Iowa Speedway Kinnick and Jack Trice stadiums and the Knoxville Nationals help boost interest. Strawn says the economy and high gas prices had impacted scratch ticket sales in the previous fiscal year. And they also took an overall look at them to try and improve their sales.
Strawn says players like variety in game styles and play, and that’s why you see some two dozen scratch ticket offerings, where it used to be only six or eight different types of scratch tickets available. Strawn says more ticket vending machines in high-traffic stores also helped make it easier for customers.
The preliminary figures released show that the Iowa Lottery generated a record 108-point-two million dollars in proceeds to the state for the fiscal year that ended June 30th. Prizes paid to players were a record 305-point-three million dollars.
