The State - News from Feb. 17, 1987

Officials of the California Lottery say they are not ready to participate in an eight-state lottery with a jackpot of $80 million that may begin as early as this fall. An agreement to conduct the game has been reached by New York, Illinois, Rhode Island, Missouri, Oregon, West Virginia, Iowa and Washington, D.C., according to officials of the North American Assn. of State and Provincial Lotteries, who met in San Francisco. William Johnston, chairman of the California Lottery Commission, said he favors “just staying within the state.” Organizers of the eight-state lottery say that at least six of the states are considering legislation to participate. The new lottery would be played on each state’s existing machines, and would be modeled on the nation’s first multi-state lottery, begun by Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont in September, 1985.