Oops.
Lottery officials are celebrating an uptick in Lotto Texas sales this year, but ticket proceeds were nearly $1.2 million short of covering the latest winning jackpot, forcing officials to dip into the state lottery account to cover the difference.
The shortage for the advertised $21 million jackpot that hit on July 31 was not the first the Lottery Commission has had to cover.
Lotto Texas jackpots are guaranteed to be worth at least the advertised amount, but ticket sales have fallen short of covering 14 of the 24 jackpots won since August 2006, according to figures from lottery watchdog Dawn Nettles and documents posted on the commission’s website.
State law allows officials to shift money from the state lottery account, which includes sales revenue from all lottery games.
The situation is drawing fresh criticism from Nettles, who said it means the lottery’s operating account or proceeds slated for the school trust fund must suffer.
“What I know for sure is that Lotto Texas is not self-supporting. They are not able to pay the players from sales. They are having to get money from either their operating budget or school fund money,” said Nettles, who owns the online Lotto Report. “The state’s getting shortchanged.”
If you are now asking yourself “Haven’t I heard something like this before?”, the answer is yes, you have. Some things never change.