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Posted by Barton Lorimor
I held off posting this yesterday hoping there would be more to post. But since that did not really happen, here’s the latest development in the state’s effort to privatize the lottery…
Odds are growing that a lucrative contract to manage the Illinois Lottery is heading toward a formal protest, adding more drama and further delay to the high-stakes bidding process that Gov. Pat Quinn is slated to decide on Sept. 15.
One of the biggest lottery firms in the world, Intralot S.A., is weighing a protest after it was eliminated on Aug. 9, barely a week after bids were submitted on July 30, for reasons that remain unknown.
“To date, no information has been provided to Intralot, and therefore the company does not understand how the second-largest lottery vendor/operator in the world, with operations in more than 50 countries and 11 US states, could have been eliminated that early in the process,” the firm said in a statement Tuesday.
Northstar Lottery Group and the Camelot Group are the two finalists still in the mix for the contract.
Camelot runs the UK lottery and the web of organizations that makeup Northstar have consulting contracts throughout the U.S. and Europe. Illinois’ plan would be the first of its kind in the U.S.
Sun-Times columnist Lewis Lazare has more on the politics of the decision…
As the Sept. 15 date draws nearer and the bidding process gains a higher profile in other media outlets, sources say Illinois gubernatorial candidate and Quinn opponent Bill Brady could be preparing to enter the fray and make a statement about the private management contract bid process. But Illinois Senate president John Cullerton, who helped mastermind the legislation that prompted bidding for a Lottery private management contract, is keeping his thoughts to himself, at least for now. “The Senate president is keeping track of what has taken place, but since this is an ongoing process, it would not be appropriate to comment,” said a Cullerton spokesman Tuesday.
Northstar and Camelot are to appear before lottery officials next week to make their case.
Related…
* Quinn focuses on local labor
* Quinn, Davis Defend State’s Flood Assistance Program
* Emergency drill shows state well prepared for crises
* Inspection was no surprise to nursing home
State authorities are investigating whether a city Department of Family and Support Services official tipped off a Chicago nursing home to a surprise inspection led by the state attorney general’s office that was designed to protect vulnerable residents at the facility, the Tribune has learned.
When a team of law enforcement officials arrived at the Grasmere Place nursing home in Uptown for the surprise “Operation Guardian” sweep on July 22, facility administrator Celeste Jensen was waiting for them in the lobby. “What took you so long?” Jensen asked.
* Quinn stops at local nursing home to highlight reforms
* Herald & Review: State lawmakers fall short for schools
* JG-TC: State furlough order now means nothing
* Illinois Commerce Commission slams Tenaska ‘clean coal’ plant
* ICC report questions costs, timing of proposed Taylorville Energy Center
* Report questions cost, benefits of Taylorville clean-coal plant
* State Regulators Question Whether ‘’Clean Coal'’ Plant Would Raise Energy Bills
* State watchdog gives itself power to intercept E. St. Louis funds
The move made Friday by the East St. Louis Financial Advisory Authority means the oversight panel can intercept city money that comes from state sources, including gambling fees from the Casino Queen, and deposit it in an account that the authority controls. The authority then could take over responsibility for paying some of the city’s bills.
* Illinois signs bills changing thermostat manufacturers’ mercury rules
* Campaign signs get longer life span
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 9:00 am
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Cullerton has previously protested RFPs by public agencies where his client wasn’t the winning bidder, nice to have power to mis-use.
Comment by John Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 9:42 am
Intralot lost on the video gaming contract, too. If they have something to say on the process, they should spit it out.
Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 10:24 am
Having the lottery control the process is exactly like having the fox guard the hen house. That their current vendors, usually fierce competitors, have combined to bid the contract shows clearly where the evaluation wind is blowing: to curry favor with the lottery, not maximize the lottery’s unrealized potential. I would worry less about Cullerton’s power and more about acting Superintendent Winnett’s clear prejudices and motives.
Comment by walter sobchak Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 10:33 am
Hold on to your wallets sports fans. The buzzards are circling.
Comment by Bill Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 10:43 am
NH administrator waiting for the inspectors when they arrive - “what took you so long”. Claims was warned of the surprise inspection by an official from the City of Chicago.
No one should be surprised by this.
Comment by dupage dan Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 10:47 am
Quinn stops at local nursing home to pick out a room.
Comment by Fed up Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 11:25 am
Guys, you should all step back with this Lottery thing. The RFP process is very complicated and specific requirements must be met to a T. Our agency just went through the process and it took an entire year. In the end some vendors were disqualified out of the gate for things as simple as not sealing their cost proposal. If you don’t meet the general RFP requirements at the beginning, you are thrown out and it doesn’t matter what your proposal looks like. I know people think the process can be fixed, however, if it can I would like to know how.
Comment by Demoralized Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 1:57 pm
By the way, no information on reasons contractors are disqualified are provided until after the entire process is complete. Nothing about this is unusual.
Comment by Demoralized Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 1:58 pm
What balderdash. No one has ever attempted to hire a private manager for a lottery since lotteries were restarted in the sixties. No one knows how much potential there is inherent in existing lottery products…but any insight into increases is a slap in the face of lottery administrators. They, and you, seek to hide behind ‘process’ to disguise prejudices. Two bidders? Two bidders is the only proof one would need for how open and fair the process was.
Comment by Walter Sobchak Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 3:57 pm
Gosh!! Another Illinois dirty deal!! Gtech is the winner!! Gtech (Northstar) had the deal all along. Watta shock. Google “gtech corruption” or “gtech scandal”. Gtech is the perfect company for Illinois!! Pitiful, very pitiful.
Comment by Watta Surprise!!! Thursday, Sep 2, 10 @ 5:19 pm