The Arizona Lottery hit the jackpot.
During the 2020-21 fiscal year, the lottery reported a record $1.43 billion in gross sales. That’s a 31% increase from the previous period.
Gregg Edgar, the lottery’s executive director, said the sales increase from July 2020 to June 2021 will help multiple state-run organizations.
“$1.43 billion is just so substantial, and when you stop and look at it, that generally means a huge boon for the state in terms of money that comes back to fund important programs.”
AZ Lottery sales: where the money is coming from
Edgar said the COVID-19 pandemic may have shifted sales in a positive direction, with some people spending more money while they staying at home last summer.
Additionally, lottery sales generated nearly $97 million in retailer commissions across the state. At the same time, more than $977 million in prizes were paid out. This helped drive the economy and bolster retailer revenues recovering from the impact of the pandemic.
There are more than 3,000 Arizona Lottery retail locations, giving players access to popular draw games like Powerball and Mega Millions. There are also loads of scratch and instant tab games. And more money could be on the way.
Arizona residents now have another chance to win big with the state adding a third weekly Powerball drawing on Mondays. This creates more opportunities for the jackpot to grow faster and larger.
The additional drawing will not change the Powerball game, price, prize structure or odds of winning. However, at least for now, it’s unclear how much money the additional drawing will generate.
How Arizona Lottery gives back to the community
Of the $1.43 billion earned, $261 million is going to programs and services, including those focused on improving health, education and transportation.
Nearly $38 million will head to the Arizona Board of Regents’ University Bond Fund. This money will help finance the construction and maintenance of vital infrastructure and facilities at Arizona’s public universities.
The lottery will also direct more than $22.2 million to the Arizona Department of Health Services as a way to provide vital assistance to low-income Arizona families so they can eat well and remain healthy.
Meanwhile, almost $11.5 million is going to the Local Transportation Area Fund to improve the state’s transportation network. Included in that will be expanding mass transit and providing vulnerable Arizonans the access they need.
Over the past 40 years, the Arizona Lottery has given back over $4.6 billion to the organizations.