Public Gaming International November/December 2021

12 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 PGRI INTERVIEWS Paul Jason: As Lead of the Mega Millions Consortium, could you comment on how the direction and initiatives of Mega Millions may be evolving over the next couple years? Pat McDonald: While I don’t have any announcements to make at this time, the Mega Millions consortium continues to evaluate game enhancement options to keep Mega Millions on the forefront of consumers' minds. We’re watching the impact of the recent Powerball change, but exploring all options (add-on games, price point, prize matrix, etc.) to see what makes the most sense. Prior to being named Lottery Director in 2019, you served for twelve years on the Lottery Commission, the last eight as the chair. How does that service prepare you for and inform your leadership of the state lottery? P. McDonald: My service on the Commis- sion occurred at a time of growth for the Lottery. During my tenure, the Com- mission approved new games and helped stand up a new regulatory structure for Video Lottery Terminals (VLT) at Ohio’s seven racetracks. While it wasn’t my role to get involved in the day-to-day operations, I was able to get to know the staff—many of whom work for me today— and understand the impact of innovative ideas on our bottom line (education). For e xample, when I was first appointed, the Lottery added KENO to its product portfolio. This addition has been wildly successful. Last year alone, KENO exceeded $575 million in sales. In 2012, the first racino, Scioto Downs, opened its VLT facility as a licensed video lottery retailer. Today, there are seven racinos under the Lottery’s purview and they brought in over $365 million in profit in FY’20. How might the Ohio regulatory environ- ment change over the next couple years: Is sports-betting or iLottery on the horizon? P. McDonald: Recently, the Ohio Legisla- ture authorized the Veteran and Fraternal clubs to offer charitable electronic instant bingo within their facilities. While we remain neutral on that, we pay close attention any time another competitor for the consumer’s discretionary dollar comes into play. My job is to ensure that we meet (and hopefully exceed) the funding we’ve committed to Ohio’s Lottery Profits Education Fund, and I intend to continue to innovate to stay competitive. The Legislature is currently debating both sports betting and iLottery. Obviously, as Lottery Director, I would like to implement iLottery as we’ve seen how it brings in new players and is quite success- ful in the states that do offer it already; however, at this time, we are waiting on a decision from the Legislature. What do you think the post-pandemic work-environment/work-style will look like? Full return to in-person office operations, or hybrid system with staff spending some days working from home? PGRI INTRODUCTION: Pat McDonald was named Director of the Ohio Lottery in February 2019. Prior to his appointment, Pat began serving as a member of the Ohio Lottery Commission in 2007 and has served as Chairman for the last eight years. Under his leadership, the Commission added Committees on Responsible Gambling and Audit to review and refine the agency’s management practices. As Director, Mr. McDonald oversees a $4 billion operation through the sale of traditional lottery games at nearly 10,000 licensed retailers and the regulation of the video lottery terminals at Ohio’s seven racetracks. In FY2021, the Ohio Lottery produced $4.3 billion in sales resulting in a $1.36 billion transfer to the Lottery Profits Education Fund. LESSONS LEARNED OVER THE LAST 18 MONTHS Pat McDonald, Director, Ohio Lottery Lead of the Mega Millions Consortium