Success breeds success. When it came time for Arkansas to establish a lottery, the state came looking to South Carolina, where the S.C. Education Lottery has an impressive record.

From Jan. 7, 2002, through June 30, 2010, the General Assembly appropriated more than $2.2 billion from the lottery to supplement educational funding in South Carolina. Total funds transferred to the Education Lottery Account by the lottery since inception exceeded $2 billion on Aug. 13. The account funds scholarships and grants. Proceeds also support various educational programs for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.

Since its beginning, the lottery was run by former lawmaker Ernie Passailaigue, a good manager and excellent spokesman. Arkansas has hired the South Carolinian and some others from our lottery operation to lead that state in starting its lottery, which is expected to begin in October.

So where do the departures leave the S.C. lottery?

First, Paula Harper Bethea is most capable in the role of interim executive director.

Secondly, the numbers as reported by the S.C. Education Lottery speak for themselves. Total transfers to the state treasurer for deposit into the Education Lottery Account in fiscal year 2008-09 exceeded $260 million. This surpassed the revenue goal set by the Board of Economic Advisors by more than $8 million.

SCEL continued generated more than $1.003 billion in ticket sales in the year. Lottery players won more than $630 million in prizes, over 62.8 percent of sales, via SCEL games. Retailers earned more than $70 million in commissions, representing 7 percent of total sales.

In the year that ended June 30, more than 97 cents of every dollar spent by players on the lottery was returned to the state in the form of contributions to education, prizes, retailer commissions and other payments to South Carolina residents and vendors.

Instant ticket sales continued to be a strong source of revenue, with total instant ticket sales exceeding $648 million. The combined revenue for all online games exceeded $355 million.

Another important milestone for the year was the lottery’s November conversion to a new online gaming vendor – Intralot. Across the state, lottery and Intralot staff collaborated to train retailers and replace the old terminals with the new Intralot terminals. The terminals enable faster satellite communication and provide retailers with the opportunity to sell lottery tickets 24 hours a day.

“The lottery continues to be a strong revenue generator for schools and students throughout the state,” said SCEL Chief Operating Officer Tony Cooper. “We’re quite proud of this year’s results, especially given the weak economy.”

As Bethea says about the lottery and those operating it now and into the future: “The hard work of our dedicated staff and qualified retailers enables the lottery to successfully continue to raise proceeds that enhance the quality of life for South Carolinians.”

For detailed information on where lottery money goes, visit sceducationlottery.com.

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