LJWorld.com / Lottery boss resigns

Archive for Tuesday, September 12, 2000

Lawrence resident to leave Kansas Lottery on Oct. 1

September 12, 2000

The Kansas Lottery's top executive is resigning.

Lawrence resident Greg Ziemak, executive director for the Kansas Lottery, said Monday he would leave his $98,000-a-year job effective Oct. 1. He sent his resignation letter to Gov. Bill Graves on Friday, nearly seven years after being appointed to the post by Gov. Joan Finney.

"It's going to be good for my family," Ziemak said. "And it will be good for the lottery, to get some new blood and some new ideas."

Ziemak, 52, said he didn't have another job yet, but had entered "discussions" with a couple of parties. He expects to be working somewhere else by the end of October.

As executive director, Ziemak has been in charge of the state's gaming programs, including Kansas Cash, Keno and participation in the 21-state Powerball game.

The Kansas Lottery took in $192.56 million during its fiscal year ended June 30, up 26 percent from the $152.3 million collected during Ziemak's first year in Topeka.

In fiscal 2000, the lottery sent the state $59.65 million for a variety of uses, including economic development programs. That's up 25 percent from $47.9 million in fiscal 1994.

"I decided a few months back that it was time to move on to another challenge," Ziemak said.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is investigating the Kansas Lottery, Ziemak said, after the agency's security division uncovered an "incident" a few months ago that required attention.

"I cannot comment on the investigation because we're involved in it," he said Monday.

Ziemak said the investigation had no bearing on his decision to resign.

The lottery will be a hot-button issue during the upcoming legislative session, Ziemak said, because its existence will be up for its five-year review. To comply with state law, legislators must decide whether to continue with gaming in the state or abolish it.

At the end of this month, Ziemak will end his term as president of the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, a trade organization for lotteries in 38 states and several international organizations.

In July he started his term as vice president of the Multi-State Lottery Assn., the 21-state group that runs Powerball. Ziemak also is president of the association's Powerball Game Group.