The North Carolina lottery commission voted unanimously Monday afternoon to add MegaMillions to its lineup, giving the state a second multi-state game with eye-popping jackpots.

MegaMillions tickets could start selling as early as Jan. 31. North Carolina has sold Powerball tickets since 2006, the year the state lottery began, with two drawings a week on Wednesday and Saturday The addition of MegaMillions will give players two more drawings a week, Tuesday and Friday, in which the jackpot can balloon to $200 million or more.

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ONE MORE QUESTION: U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx has introduced a bill that would requires U.S. Census takers to try to find out how many illegal immigrants are in the U.S. We're guessing some answers to that question might just not be truthful.

BILLIONS AND BILLIONS: The state lottery director wants to add another national super jackpot game to complement Powerball. The move would be the first step toward creating a near-nationwide big jackpot game that would appeal to those who think the Powerball odds are too fair.

BIG SPENDER: State Sen. R.C. Soles Jr., a Columbus County Democrat, spent the second most of any competitive candidate — more than $830,000 — to win his Senate seat last year. That was BEFORE he shot someone. No telling what the figure might be next time.

IN OTHER NEWS: Margaret Harper, who ran twice for lieutenant governor and was a pioneer among female political figures in North Carolina, died at 92. The Triangle region buys 40 percent of all lottery tickets sold in the state. The Attorney General won't appeal Superintendent June Atkinson's right to run the state school system.

Adding a second, big jackpot lottery game to North Carolina would mean more players and more tickets sold, said lottery executive director Tom Shaheen.

Powerball sales spike when jackpots hit the hundreds of millions. Adding a second multi-state game, the Mega Millions, would likely mean that there's always one game with a big jackpot, Shaheen said. The current Mega Millions jackpot is $200 million and the Powerball jackpot is $30 million.

"The research is pretty clear that players have an interest in playing both games," Shaheen told Dome. "Whatever jackpot is bigger is the one they're going to run to."

The downside is that with more players playing each game, jackpots will hit more often, reducing the mega-huge jackpots that get so all the news media attention and spur sales.

Making Powerball and Mega Millions available in multiple states would also be a first step toward a national lottery game that is available in all 44 states with a lottery. That game would likely feature a $5 ticket and frequent huge jackpots.

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The North Carolina lottery has come up with a new scratch-off ticket game offering the chance to win some very big bucks.

But you have to be ready to shell out some big bucks to play.

The lottery is starting its first $20 scratch-off ticket, the $200 Million Extravaganza. The $200 million refers to the total prize money available, not the amount a single player can win. 

Lottery Executive Director Tom Shaheen said the total prize money in play should help attract buyers for the ticket.

"You're getting a lot larger prizes and more prizes for $20," Shaheen said. 

Previously, the most expensive scratch-off game in North Carolina cost $10. Officials expect the ticket to draw new players, although frequent scratch-off ticket buyers may splurge on a $20 game.

The game features five tickets with a top prize of $3 million, and ten tickets with a $1 million prize. Those prizes would be paid in installments over 20 years.

Lottery officials say the game offers the best overall odds of winning something, even if it's only $30.

And about those odds: the chances of winning any prize on the game are 1 in 2.6. The odds of winning $3 million are 1 in 2.7 million.

Update: Post now includes comments from lottery director. 

Nature Boy Ric Flair, Mr. Wooooooo! himself, will be featured on a new $5 scratch off lottery ticket.

Flair, who lives in Charlotte, intends to do a number of promotional appearances to help sell more of the tickets, appropriately entitled "WOOOOOOO!"

The ticket, which has eight top prizes of $100,000, goes on sales Sept. 22.

Lottery executive director Tom Shaheen said the ticket could help attract new players.

"We are always looking for ways to appeal to new players so we can maximize sales and generate as much money as possible for education.”
 
Players have 16 numbers to play on each ticket, which corresponds with Flair’s 16 championship belts.

The odds of winning any prize from the ticket are 1 in 3.63. The odds of wining one of the top prices are 1 in 390,000.

The state Lottery Commission this morning agreed to a deal that would pave the way for vending machines that would sell instant games as well as Powerball tickets.

Currently, the lottery uses vending machines to sell instant tickets. The deal would allow the lottery to set up machines that would allow players to buy Powerball tickets as well as the games that draw three, four or five digits.

The machines are intended to help extend the lottery's presence into chain stores that have been reluctant to sell tickets. Stores such as CVS, Dollar General and Wal-Mart do not currently sell lottery tickets.

"They're asking to see a more convenient business model," said Lottery executive director Tom Shaheen.

Players who use the machines would have to insert a drivers license to prove they are 18. Shaheen said the machines dispense the same tickets that would otherwise be purchased behind a counter.

"These are not video machines. They're not interactive by any means," Shaheen told the commission Tuesday morning.

Buying the machines would have cost the state as much as $20 million. Instead the lottery will have them provided at no charge in exchange for extending by four years its contract with GTECH, the company that handles ticket printing and logistics for the state lottery.

More after the jump.

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The N.C. lottery has received industry awards for its bookkeeping and quality assurance.

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada gave the lottery an award for outstanding achievement in annual financial reporting, only the second lottery to receive that recognition.

"This is a nationally recognized, impartial review of our financial reporting both to the financial community and, in this case, to the general public," said Jim Knight, the lottery's director of finance. "We want to make sure we’re transparent."

The North American Association of State & Provincial Lotteries recently awarded the lottery special recognition for its quality assurance testing for new products. 

"Like other lotteries, the NCEL strives to ensure integrity and efficiency in its day-to-day operation," said Tom Shaheen, the lottery's executive director. "I am very proud of our staff’s accomplishments."

North Carolina lottery director Tom Shaheen has been elected president of the multi-state association that runs the Powerball.

The Multi-State Lottery Association includes 32 lotteries. Shaheen will continue to run the North Carolina lottery. The multi state association establishes policies, oversees financial matters and approves new lotteries for membership.

Dome checked and is sure that Shaheen can't help anyone get an inside line on Powerball numbers.  

Before coming to North Carolina, Shaheen was the chief executive officer for the New Mexico Lottery Authority for over five years, and prior to that he was the executive vice president of operations and administration for the Georgia Lottery Corporation.

In a commercial airing now, Lottery director Tom Shaheen cautions against buying too many lottery tickets.

The law that created a state lottery includes some requirements that lottery officials try to curb problem gambling. The ad fits in that strategy.

The ad features Shaheen sitting in a diner. While he explains that lottery tickets can be fun, Shaheen begins dumping a bottle of hot sauce on his sandwich. Shaheen encourages anyone with a gambling problem to call the helpline at 877-718-5543.

"Because like anything in life, a little moderation can make all the difference," Shaheen says, looking glumly at his over hot-sauced sandwich.

The lottery cut the spot some time ago at a cost of $38,390, said lottery spokeswoman Pam Walker. The ad typically makes an appearance when the Powerball jackpot hits the $150 million mark. It's running now during prime time during the nationally observed Problem Gambling Awareness Week.

The estimated cost to run the ad this week is $148,000, Walker said.