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Powerball jackpot raised to $550 million (AUDIO)

November 28, 2012 By

Tonight’s Powerball Jackpot drawing has hit a record setting amount of money set to be dished out to one or a few lucky winners.

Originally set at $425 million dollars, now due to strong sales in the jackpot drawing, the Lottery has raised the bar to over half a billion dollars for one very lucky winner, or a few.

Executive Director of the Missouri Lottery May Reardon says the cash option for a single payout before taxes is worth $360 million dollars.

 “Most players in Missouri use the ‘Quick-Pick’ where they can just go up to the desk and they say, ‘just give me a Quick-Pick,’ she says. “But we have our tried and true players in the state of Missouri who always want to play their favorite birthdays, they want to play their favorite numbers,” she says.

“They want to play any lucky numbers or have their superstitions and we encourage both. And Reardon is hoping that one of those winners will be from Missouri.

 “It’s been some time since we’ve seen the jackpot this high and so we really need a winner in Missouri, so hopefully folks are out there playing responsibly and spending their two dollars,” she says.

AUDIO: Mary Farucci reports. (1:03)

Filed Under: Entertainment, Featured, Gambling, Human Interest, News

Senate leader hopes funding shifts work (AUDIO)

May 31, 2012 By

The governor is touring veterans homes to sign a bill providing millions of dollars to those homes.  The senate leader has concerns.  But he also has some optimism, that things will work out for others losing money in a complicated funding operation. .

Veterans look on as Gov. Jay Nixon signs House Bill 1731 at the Missouri Veterans Home in St. Louis. The bill provides a dedicated funding source for Missouri’s seven veterans homes, where more than 1,300 military veterans live. UPI / Bill Greenblatt

The Missouri Veterans Trust Fund is almost broke.  The bill the governor is signing should keep that fund from running out a year from now by taking gambling revenue away from early childhood programs and putting it into the trust fund. .

Early childhood education programs are to get money from the national tobacco settlement to make up for its loss.  To make up for losses to other programs that had been financed by the tobacco settlement, the legislature is counting on the lottery to sell a lot more tickets–maybe reduce jackpots a little–to maintain funding for those programs.

Senate leader Rob Mayer has his fingers crossed that all of this will work out. He thinks the lottery commission will figure a way to increase ticket sales to provide increased revenue needed.

AUDIO: Mayer :32

Mayer also is optimistic that an improving economy will generate more state income to finance all the fund-switching.

Filed Under: Education, Featured, Gambling, Military, News

Mathewson steps down from Gaming Commission post (AUDIO)

May 30, 2012 By

Former Senator Jim Mathewson of Sedalia has stepped down as chairman of the State Gaming Commission, but he says his commitment to public service is far from over. Mathewson served in the Missouri legislature from 1974 to 2004. He served as chairman of the Gaming Commission from 2009 until today. So is he finished serving the state? No. He says he’ll never walk away from public service.

Mathewson says you can find him this August riding around in a golf cart at the Missouri State Fair selling water for a dollar a bottle…. “a pretty good buy,” he says. Proceeds benefit the State Fair Foundation, which Mathewson has been active with since its inception. He says it’s a good thing, because there hasn’t been an infrastructure improvement bill for the fairgrounds for some five years.

And his wife continues to battle some unfortunate health issues, he says, and it’s better that he stay closer to home. His duties with the Gaming Commission were not overly taxing, he says, but it did involve travel to the state’s 12 — soon to be 13 — casinos as well as administrative work and monthly meetings.

He has nothing but great things to say about the commission, and serving as chairman, noting that everyone on the commission gives 100 percent and it shows.

AUDIO: Jessica Machetta reports (1:10)

Filed Under: Gambling, Legislature, News

Sponsor says bill solves veterans vs. children funding fight

February 29, 2012 By

Lawmakers for several years have struggled with what has been termed a fight between children and veterans. Several education programs and veterans programs are funded by lottery proceeds, and legislators have struggled to find a balance between the two. The House has given tentative approval to a bill that, its sponsor says, achieves that balance.

Representative David Day presents HB 1731. Photo courtesy: Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications.

Representative David Day (R-Dixon) tells his colleagues, “The bottom line with this bill is … it will end the ongoing fight between early childhood and veterans for their funding, which both sides really, really want.”

Day’s bill dedicates casino entrance fees to veterans programs. “That, added to what they’re already receiving from that fund which is about $6.6 million, will put them at about $37 million in funding … it takes care of all their programs: the homes, the cemeteries and all of that, which is enough to do what they need to do and give them just a little bit in reserve.”

The bill will increase funding to early childhood by about $4.5 million to about $35 million based on 2011 figures. Day pays for that by pulling more money from the pool that goes to pay out lottery winnings. It will be reduced to about 59 percent, from 63. Day says voters approved a minimum of 45 percent to payouts.

The bill sets a minimum of 27 percent of lottery funds that must go to general education. It also increases funding to the National Guard Trust Fund to $5.5 million, which supports scholarships, burial duties and other work done by the Guard. Finally, the Access Missouri financial assistance program will get $5 million.

See the text of Day’s legislation, House Bill 1731

Even with the cut to the money available for payouts, Day says Missouri will still be one of the leading states in that category.

The bill has received bipartisan support. Representative Sara Lampe (D-Springfield), who has been outspoken on education issues, told Day, “I thank you for bringing this forward … and making sure that children don’t lose and veterans don’t lose.”

One more favorable vote will send the bill to the Senate.

Filed Under: Education, Gambling, Health & Medicine, Legislature, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Powerball raises prices to 2 dollars

August 25, 2011 By

The Missouri Lottery says Powerball tickets will be raising from 1 to 2 dollars. Lottery Director May Scheve Reardon says this is in an effort to make jackpots larger. She says profits are largely driven by jackpots, so for the past seven years, those in charge of Powerball have been debating what to do to drive up jackpots.

She says more, bigger, better means, more chances to win, bigger jackpots and better odds. Powerball is taking a few balls out of the game, so its easier to win. Reardon says this will probably result in a nearly 30 percent drop in players, but it will still be worth it.

Filed Under: Gambling, Human Interest
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