In 1986, Florida voters enthusiastically approved a constitutional amendment authorizing a Lottery by a two-to-one margin. When the Florida Lottery began ticket sales on January 12, 1988, it became the first Southern state to launch a Lottery.
The Lottery's debut was a harbinger of great things to come - not only did sales begin six days ahead of schedule, but that first game, the MILLIONAIRE Scratch-Off ticket, set an industry record with more than $95 million in sales in the first 12 days. It was so successful that in just 17 days, the Lottery paid in full its startup loan of $15.5 million, plus interest.
Not resting on its laurels, Florida quickly launched its first two Draw games, FLORIDA LOTTO and CASH 3, on April 29, 1988. Lottery fever followed, resulting in a then-world record lotto jackpot of $55 million in early September, with a single winner claiming the jackpot prize. A year later, another record was set with a $106.5 million jackpot.
Today, the Florida Lottery is one of the top-selling Lotteries in North America, surpassing $4 billion in annual sales during fiscal year 2007, $5 billion in annual sales during fiscal year 2013, $6 billion in annual sales during fiscal year 2016, and $7 billion in annual sales during fiscal year 2019!
As sales have grown, so have revenues, and the Lottery remains a dependable contributor to education. More than $1 billion in each of the past 18 fiscal years has benefitted Florida students in K-12 schools and colleges and universities statewide.
Pre-kindergarten projects have directly affected the youngest Florida citizens, and thousands of K-12 students reap the benefits of Lottery dollars every school day. Meanwhile the Bright Futures Scholarship Program, which is primarily funded by Lottery revenue, provides financial aid for higher education. Since the program's inception in 1997, the Lottery has contributed more than $6.8 billion to send over 880,000 students to college.