New offerings from Pa. Lottery could be in place by end of ’14

A measure to help expand the Pennsylvania Lottery could come up for a vote before lawmakers take their summer break.

GOP members of the state Senate have a tentative plan to move legislation by July that would allow the lottery to offer additional games, such as the past-paced drawing known as keno.

Keno could be rolled out by the end of the year, according to state Revenue Secretary Dan Meuser, whose agency oversees the lottery. But the Corbett Administration is seeking a few statutory changes to facilitate the expansion, he said Wednesday during a hearing on the plans.

The goal of adding games is to build a broader audience for the lottery, Meuser said.

“Higher-income households, certainly middle-income households, like I said the 20-somethings and 30-somethings that aren’t large players of the lottery,” he said. “And by getting more people to play a little, the funding can come in to support these important programs that otherwise would be supported via taxes.”

Lottery revenues fund programs for seniors.

Lawmakers have raised concerns that a more profitable lottery could result in reduced profits for casinos.

But a researcher with the National Conference of State Legislatures said casino profits tend not to be affected by the introduction of keno.