The state of Illinois will dump the current company running the Illinois Lottery and look for a new private management partner, Gov. Bruce Rauner announced Thursday.
Rauner officially requested bids for a new contract he said will provide more revenue to services that need it most.
"It's a very important step in increasing revenue to fund our schools and to fund our key government services," Rauner said at a Thursday press conference. "As you all I think are well aware, our Illinois Lottery has been very poorly run and has failed to meet expectations."
The governor said the lottery is being operated on a bad contract.
He encouraged bids from companies outside the gaming industry and said he hopes the new contract will provide new technology to attract more lottery players.
According to the Illinois Lottery, 6.5 percent of the state’s K-12 education is funded by lottery revenue. That accounts for roughly $670 million annually.
Last month Rauner signed a stopgap budget compromise that gave the Illinois Lottery the legal authority to continue paying winners in absence of a budget.
“Governor Rauner and the General Assembly are ensuring that the Illinois Lottery can continue its mission of supporting K-12 education, capital projects and select charitable causes throughout Illinois,” Illinois Lottery Acting Director Tim McDevitt said in a statement at the time.
