History
Legislation creating Iowa's lottery was signed into law in April 1985 and the lottery
began sales on Aug. 22, 1985, with a kickoff celebration at the Iowa State Fair.
The first product sold by the Iowa Lottery was an instant-scratch game called "Scratch, Match and Win" and
players bought more than 6.4 million tickets during its first week of play.
In the years since, the Iowa Lottery has raised $2 billion for state programs while its players
have won more than $4.4 billion in prizes. Sometime in October 2019, an Iowa Lottery player purchased the ticket that helped
push lottery profits to state programs over that $2 billion threshold.
Lottery profits have helped the state in a variety of ways through the years. When legislation authorizing the Iowa
Lottery was signed into law in 1985, lottery profits were earmarked for the Iowa Plan, a long-term economic development
program. In 1991, lottery profits were designated for environmental and cultural programs. But after one year, lottery
proceeds were directed to the state General Fund.
Today, lottery proceeds are used for four main purposes in Iowa. They provide support for Iowa veterans and their families
through the Iowa Veterans Trust Fund; support through the Iowa Public Safety Survivor Benefits Fund for the surviving family members
of Iowa peace officers and fire fighters who die in the line of duty; help for a variety of significant projects through the
state General Fund and backing for the Vision Iowa program.
Since July 2008, a portion of lottery proceeds has been dedicated to the Iowa Veterans Trust Fund to support our
state's veterans and their families. The Iowa Lottery currently provides $2.5 million annually in proceeds to
the IVTF. The Veterans Trust Fund was created to provide assistance to qualified veterans and their families for
expenses such as job training or college tuition assistance; some dental, vision and hearing assistance; and
individual or family counseling programs.
Since July 2019, a portion of lottery proceeds has been dedicated to the Iowa Public Safety Survivor Benefits Fund to help
the surviving family members of Iowa peace officers and fire fighters who died in the line of duty. The fund was created to
provide assistance to the families of eligible peace officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty in paying for accident
or medical insurance coverage. Half the money in the fund is awarded to organizations that help the surviving families of eligible
peace officers, while the other half goes to organizations that help the surviving families of eligible fire fighters. The lottery
currently provides $100,000 annually in proceeds to the Survivor Fund.
Since 1992, a majority of lottery profits have been directed into the state General Fund, where they are used to pay
for programs that benefit all Iowans. The Governor and Iowa Legislature allocate money from the General Fund based on
where they believe those appropriations are needed most.
In addition to the commitment to the General Fund, lottery profits are linked to the Vision Iowa program. Vision Iowa
was implemented in 2000 to create tourism destinations in the state, assist with community attractions, and build and
repair schools. Direct funding for Vision Iowa comes from gaming revenues. However, as the program was being initiated,
investors indicated there was a need to strengthen the Vision Iowa bonds by dedicated $20 million annually in lottery
revenues as a backup.
Legislation was approved that dedicates $15 million in lottery revenues to programs for community attractions in
Iowa and another $5 million to Vision Iowa programs to build and repair schools if gambling revenues don't reach
that amount. Lottery funding will continue to be linked to Vision Iowa over the 20-year payback period of the program's
bonds.
The Lottery sells tickets in four general categories: lotto, instant-scratch, pull-tab and InstaPlay games. Lottery products
are sold at about 2,400 retail locations in Iowa.
The Iowa Lottery currently has 117 employees who work at its headquarters in Clive and its regional offices
around the state in Storm Lake, Mason City and Cedar Rapids.
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