Минесота Лотереясы: Тарихы мен дамуы

Government agency
The Minnesota State Lottery, or Minnesota Lottery, is a government agency that operates lotteries in the U. S. state of Minnesota. The state’s lottery system was established in 1988 through a successful voter referendum that amended the state’s constitution. Lottery revenue is paid out towards prizes, administrative expenses, and retailers, and the remaining proceeds are split between environmental conservation funds and the state's general fund. The Minnesota Lottery participates in the Multi State Lottery Association and several other multi jurisdiction games. In house draws include Pick 3 (previously Daily 3), Gopher 5, and North 5 (previously Northstar Cash), among many other games and offerings. The lottery posted its record level of sales in the fiscal year 2020 period at $668.6 million. After several years of debate about the creation of a state lottery system, the Minnesota Legislature put the decision before voters. In 1988, Minnesotans approved with 59% Political disputes about how to direct revenue and state budget pressures led to a second lottery related constitution amendment in 1990, which established and dedicated 40% of lottery proceeds to an environment and natural resources trust fund. Soon after its creation, the lottery quickly expanded to other games and concepts. In partnership with Nintendo and the Bloomington based Control Data Corporation, the state agency had plans to launch a test lottery with 10,000 Minnesota households in 1992 via an experimental modem for the NES. At the time, Japanese consumers were able to use the Nintendo console for banking and stock purchases. Lottery officials hoped that in home lottery ticket sales would spur growth that had flattened. Technology companies hoped the idea would spur greater American interest in the burgeoning industry of electronic commerce. Nintendo hoped the effort would extend the useful life of the NES console that was being supplanted by the SNES. The lottery would have been conducted via connection to a central computer and with pre paid credits and an encrypted password to ensure users were 18 years of age or older. The concept was ultimately not pursued after receiving substantial opposition by advocates worried that use of an in home video game console would encourage youth gambling. Several editorial pages and state legislators condemned the plan. The state's constitution was amended again in 1998 to extend authorization of the lottery to 2025. In 2004, George R. Andersen, the longtime director of the lottery who had served in the role since its inception in 1990, died the day after meeting with the Legislative Auditor about a pending report. His death was the result of an overdose of pain medication and ruled a suicide. In 2005, Michael Priesnitz, a public relations executive who was both a friend of Anderson and contractor of the lottery, died of a self inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Priesnitz's death came a month after the lottery cancelled a $1.3 million promotional contract with his company and as he was under a probe by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. Ramsey County prosecutors concluded in 2006 that Anderson had engaged in "a string of self dealing, favor granting, and contract rigging actions of the type expected from the ‘Chicago style’ politics of the past." Prosecutors did not file criminal charges as the two main suspects, Anderson and Priesnitz, were both dead.

Lottery ticket sales were suspended during the 2011 Minnesota state government shutdown. An estimate of the 20 day government closure put the revenue losses of the lottery to state funds at $9,988,000. The lottery introduced ticket sales at gas pumps and ATMs and offered online games in 2012. By 2015, the state legislature shutdown the newer types of game offerings. In 2015, lottery director Ed Van Petten resigned under pressure from Governor Mark Dayton. Van Petten had already drawn criticism from state lawmakers for expanding the lottery without sufficient authorization. When he was confronted by the Minneapolis based Star Tribune newspaper about lavish expenses that he charged to state accounts, Van Petten resigned the following day. Minnesota Management and Budget determined the reimbursements were not allowable, and Van Petten later repaid the agency. In 2017, a Ramsey County District Court narrowed the scope of the suit to potentially allow Canfield to return to the lottery as a lower level employee but not as its director. Among the managerial turmoil at the lottery, Vekich was re appointed director in 2016 by Governor Mark Dayton of the Democrat Farmer Labor party, though Vekich he had served under the GOP administration of Tim Pawlenty and he had run briefly as Republican candidate for governor. By 2018, unaffiliated, out of state companies were essentially operating as courier services to facilitate online sales of Minnesota Lottery games for state residents. Newly elected governor Tim Walz in 2019 tapped Adam Prock, the director of communications for the lottery, to take over the executive director role. The lottery posted three years of consecutive, record earnings for the fiscal year 2018, 2019, and 2020 periods. Mitigation measures for the COVID 19 pandemic in Minnesota were seen as a factor driving sales despite people staying home and record levels of unemployment. As with other state lotteries, ticket sales were uninterrupted by Walz's emergency stay at home order and considered an "essential" service, but the agency's regional field offices closed to the public, which affected some prize claiming. Some retailers also decided to halt sales to prevent the spread of COVID 19, which also affected prize claiming and sales in the state.

The Minnesota Lottery offered 48 different games in 2020. It has participated in several multi jurisdiction games: Lotto America, Lucky for Life (ended participation in 2021), Mega Millions, and Powerball. It offered the brand name lotto games Pick 3 (previously Daily 3), Gopher 5, and North 5(previously Northstar Cash), as well as several other scratch games, "print n play" games, and raffles. The minimum legal age to purchase a ticket or claim in a prize in Minnesota has been 18. Winners had one year from the date of the draw to claim game prizes. Minnesota statute had required the names of winners to be made public. But a change in state law required the lottery to withhold winners’ names after September 1, 2021, unless authorization is given.

The Minnesota State Lottery is a relatively small agency of the State of Minnesota. The 1989 law that established the lottery gave it unprecedented autonomy for a state agency. It has a director appointed by the governor and a lottery commission that acts in an advisory role. The director must hire personnel to operate the lottery in accordance with Minnesota Statutes, and one staff position must be for an attorney to perform legal responsibilities for the lottery. Minnesota Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division conducts compliance checks of lottery retailers. There were 3,100 lottery retailers in the state at the end of 2018.

By Minnesota Statute, lottery revenue is paid out towards prizes, administrative expenses, and retailers, and the remaining portion is split between a wildlife and environment trust fund and the state's general fund. Some lottery proceeds offset the cost of a Minnesota Department of Human Services' compulsive gambling program The 17 member Legislative Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources(LCCMR)though it was established in 1963 and pre dates the lotterymakes recommendations to the legislature for use of lottery proceeds credited to special environment and natural resource trust funds. Similar to other state lotteries and customer mix of private businesses, 20% of lottery players in Minnesota account for 80% of total revenue. Lottery officials have expressed concern about Minnesotans gifting lottery scratch cards to minors. Researchers have established a link between the age a person first gambles and the occurrence of excessive gambling later in life. A survey in 2019 found that as many as 2% of Minnesota students had gambling problems. Over its history, the Minnesota State Lottery has enjoyed a degree of autonomy, but that resulted in a lack of oversight. In the mid 2000s, a state auditor uncovered preferential contracting for a friend of the director. In the 2010s, several directors and senior managers were forced out for controversial management practices and abuse of state finances.