CLEVELAND (AP) - The Ohio Lottery had record sales last year, even as the state faced a sluggish recovery from the worst recession since the Great Depression.
State officials said Monday the lottery pulled in its largest haul ever with $2.6 billion in sales during the budget year that ended June 30. The commission beat the previous year's sales by $108 million.
The boon marks the 10th year in a row that the lottery has seen sales increase.
The lottery says it has poured $738.8 million in annual profits into a state education fund. That marks the second-largest contribution in the lottery's history.
The largest happened in 1997, when the lottery contributed $748.8 million to schools. Lottery Interim Director Dennis Berg says more than half of the sales came from instant ticket games.