Since
1999, all Virginia Lottery profits have
been used
for public education in the Commonwealth, for
kindergarten through 12th grade.
In Fiscal Year 2011, the Virginia Lottery had
sales of more than $1.4 billion. Of this total, the Lottery contributed $444.2 million, or 29.8%, to
public education grades K-12. A record 59.4%
went back to players in the form of prizes, 5.7% went to the retailers who sell Virginia Lottery
tickets, and 5.1% went to operational expenses.
To view the FY11 Distribution of Lottery
Proceeds, click here. To view the Lottery's complete 2011 Financial Report, click here.
When Virginians voted
in 1987 for a
state-operated lottery, many made
the
assumption
that they voted on how to spend
the Lottery’s proceeds.
This was not the case.
The lottery
proceeds, which are approximately
one-third of lottery sales, were
to be used as determined by
the
General Assembly.
The
use of the proceeds has changed
over
time.
In 1989, lottery
proceeds were dedicated
to
capital construction projects.
From 1990 to
1998, the lottery
proceeds were transferred to
the
state’s
General Fund. Starting in 1999,
a
state
budget amendment sent
lottery proceeds
to
local public
school divisions to be used
solely
for educational purposes.
In the year
2000,
more
than
80% of Virginia voters said
yes to the
creation of the
State Lottery Proceeds Fund.
The
measure, now a permanent
part of Virginia's
Constitution,
directs all Virginia
Lottery
profits be
used solely for
educational purposes.
The following table shows
the distribution of
lottery revenue for the
last 23
years:
|
Fiscal
Year |
Sales
|
Prizes
|
Retailer
Compensation |
Operating
Expenses |
Proceeds* |
| 2011 |
$1.482 b |
$881.0 m |
$83.8 m |
$74.9 m |
$444.2 m |
| 2010 |
$1.435 b |
$852.7 m |
$80.4 m |
$73.8 m |
$430.2 m |
| 2009 |
$1.365 b |
$781.0 m |
$76.9 m |
$73.7 m |
$439.1 m |
| 2008 |
$1.386 b |
$792.3 m |
$77.7 m |
$73.7 m |
$455.3 m |
| 2007 |
$1.362 b |
$791.7 m |
$76.4 m |
$68.0 m |
$437.1 m |
| 2006 |
$1.365 b |
$773.5 m |
$76.2 m |
$69.7 m |
$454.9 m |
| 2005 |
$1.333 b |
$774.6 m |
$75.6 m |
$66.2 m |
$423.5 m |
| 2004 |
$1.262
b |
$720.2
m |
$70.7
m |
$68.1
m |
$408.1
m |
| 2003 |
$1.135
b |
$638.1
m |
$63.0
m |
$69.3
m |
$375.2
m |
| 2002 |
$1.108
b |
$613.7
m |
$62.2
m |
$75.2
m |
$367.7
m |
| 2001 |
$1.002
b |
$557.3
m |
$55.9
m |
$73.1
m |
$329.1
m |
| 2000 |
$973.0
m |
$537.3
m |
$55.2
m |
$67.2
m |
$323.5
m |
|
1999 |
$934.5
m |
$506.9
m |
$52.1
m |
$68.8
m |
$321.9
m |
|
1998 |
$914.2
m |
$503.8
m |
$49.5
m |
$69.8
m |
$318.9
m |
|
1997 |
$920.8
m |
$475.5
m |
$49.5
m |
$64.8
m |
$342.5
m |
|
1996 |
$924.3
m |
$489.6
m |
$49.1
m |
$64.1
m |
$332.6
m |
|
1995 |
$902.5
m |
$487.3
m |
$48.4
m |
$65.6
m |
$311.6
m |
|
1994 |
$875.5
m |
$465.6
m |
$47.5
m |
$65.8
m |
$303.5
m |
|
1993 |
$843.4
m |
$444.7
m |
$45.0
m |
$63.5
m |
$297.0
m |
|
1992 |
$846.6
m |
$454.3
m |
$45.2
m |
$64.5
m |
$290.8
m |
|
1991 |
$790.3
m |
$421.0
m |
$41.9
m |
$53.3
m |
$294.5
m |
|
1990 |
$474.8
m |
$252.4
m |
$24.7
m |
$43.1
m |
$156.5
m |
|
1989 |
$409.1
m |
$205.9
m |
$20.6
m |
$41.6
m |
$140.5
m |
| TOTAL |
$24.049
billion |
$13.420
billion |
$1.327
billion |
$1.517
billion |
$7.998
billion |
*Not all proceeds earned in a fiscal year are appropriated in that year.
Literary Fund
By
law, all unclaimed Virginia Lottery prizes go
to the Literary Fund. The Literary
Fund is used solely for educational purposes, such as school
construction, renovation, and teacher retirement funding.
The Lottery transferred $10.8 million to the Literary Fund in Fiscal Year 2011. Since 1988, the Lottery has transferred more than $211 million in unclaimed prizes to the Literary Fund.
Set-Off Debt Collection Act
The Lottery also participates
in the Set-Off Debt Collection Act, in which
prize payments are withheld to
pay certain obligations that the
prize winner owes. Examples of these
obligations are state and federal
taxes, child support and tuition
from state universities or colleges.
The Virginia Lottery collected nearly $1.5 million in FY 2011, for a total of more than $19.3 million since 1988. |
