Florida Lottery chief comes under hostile fire in House committee

Mar 31, 2009, 9:27 pm (6 comments)

Florida Lottery

The Florida Lottery's top executive got a dressing-down today from House Republicans for failing to bid out a lucrative contract produce its TV ads, despite a state law requiring the department to start doing so last summer.

The Lottery hired its New York-based ad agency on a month-to-month arrangement on June 30 — one day before language in the state budget took effect requiring the department to put the $3.5 million contract out for competitive bids. The monthly arrangement allowed the Lottery to skirt the law and keep its ad firm, Cooper DDB.

"I'm tremendously disappointed in their efforts to competitively bid the advertising contract in a fair and open way," said Rep. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, who chairs the House General Government Appropriations Committee. The no-bid deal is "impeding" the Lottery's ability to provide maximum funds for education, Hays said.

Lottery Secretary Leo DiBenigno, fielding hostile questions from legislators, defended the contract. He said he didn't want to "excuse the delay" in meeting the bidding law, but the department has been strapped for time because it was negotiating a new contract for scratch-off tickets and rolling out PowerBall.

"Absolutely, it took too long, but here are the circumstances — they're not perfect, they're not excuses, but they are the circumstances that existed," DiBenigno said.

That didn't cut it with legislators, who noted that the budget language that took effect July 1 specifically barred the Lottery from extending or renewing its current ad contract. The Lottery contract exention run afoul of a "clear, unambiguous legislative directive," said Rep. Charles McBurney, R-Jacksonville.

The Lottery is now in an "informal" bidding process to select a new ad firm, DiBenigno said. From 29 firms that submitted pitches, the Lottery picked seven finalists. The winner will be announced in May.

Even now, though, the Lottery still isn't following the state's formal bidding procedures. Instead, the department is using the loophole for "artistic services," that Attorney General Bill McCollum used to produce his cyber safety TV ads. The attorney general gave that controversial no-bid contract to the same consultants who produced his 2006 campaign commercials.

Choosing an ad firm is subjective, DiBenigno said.

"It requires some flexibility in being able to ensure you can look at a storyboard, some examples of commercials, and come to a very subject conclusion that one is better than other," he said.

Hays, though, was incredulous that the Lottery's bid solicitation didn't follow standard bidding procedures. For example, price wasn't included as a consideration in evaluating proposals. And the Lottery didn't tell ad firms how they'd be judged.

"How could price not be a factor?" Hays said. "How could they consider this a fair process? Do you have a list of objectives by which you determine your top seven and determine to discard the other (22)?"

DiBenigno said price would be a factor later on in the negotiations, after the Lottery determines what firms are the strongest.

"I come to this from the standpoint, you get what you pay for," DiBenigno said. "Sometimes you pay for quality."

On how firms were judged, DiBenigno said he'd have to get back to the committee on the "review process."

The Lottery's current ad firm is New York-based Cooper DDB, a worldwide company that produced the McDonald's "I'm Lovin' It" ads. From June to December, the firm collected $2.1 million through on its month-to-month contract with the Lottery, the Legislature's policy office reported.

Hays noted that, to function, the Lottery needs the public trust. And the department takes extraordinary measures to achieve from, from weighing its lottery balls before and after each drawing to ensure they're equal to having armed guards on site, he noted.

Rep. Ed Hooper, R-Clearwater, said the public "doesn't necessarily have a great amount of faith in their government 100 percent of the time."

"Your department above all, with the money we extract from people $1 at a time, has to kind of rise above that," he said.

Sun Sentinel

Comments

LotteryJunkiE99's avatarLotteryJunkiE99

Well I always knew the ad campaigns were good for the lotteryBut not essential. Let me tell you, once a lottery becomes available in a state, people usually know about it, and begin to play. 

But I guess this is to draw more attention to it, and more sales to it, which is fine.  I remember we have had the Lottery here in Oklahoma for about 2 years now, but it wasn't until about a little later than a year and half into it, that the ads become even somewhat apparant.   Now they are more visible, and seen in more TV Stations.  But, people usually know its there.   I mean, usually just getting gas, and you will say a "PLAY HERE" Sign, out there somewhere on the store. 

But anyway, I do think you get what you pay for, and I can't say I like the McD's 'I'm loving it' commercials too much.   Usually they make people who eat there look goofish and dare i Say?  foolish ? ?? ,  And sometimes the lottery ads are no different, But I guess then again the punchline is to make it look like fun, and to appeal to the LARGE IDEA OF WINNING. so exaggeration is forgiven,  LOL.  BUT HEY YOU ADVERTISERS, TRY NOT TO MAKE THEM TOOOO STUPID.  lol its an insult to whoever IS  paying attention.   Troll

 

Anyway, Florida is an important Powerball state now, if not THE MOST important one now, in terms of sales, so I hope they get this right.  From what i've checked out, Florida Powerball seems like a quality lottery overall.  I love their Flamingo Logo, for example.  I hope they try to welcome new players, and more importantly overall is too make it seem fun, and not a cumbersome thing to go out and buy, lol I swear what ruins it for most people are the rude clerks.   Sulk Off [ slowly backs away hahahahahaha ] Wink

konane's avatarkonane

Florida Lottery needs to allow competitive bids instead of the good OLD boy system OLD way of keeping things the stagnant.

Past couple of years Georgia Lottery has run some exceedingly effective generic (no celebrity faces) ads which are memorable.

BuyLow's avatarBuyLow

It seems every organization, gov't and private, these days are run by a bunch of self-enriching <snip>s.  Rant

This post has been automatically changed by the Lottery Post computer system to remove inappropriate content and/or spam.

OldSchoolPa's avatarOldSchoolPa

It sounds like this 6 figure executive is not doing the job he is getting paid well to do...kind of like some of financial and automotive CEOs.

time*treat's avatartime*treat

"Skirt the law"? Pffffft. Don't put a loophole there and then complain when someone jumps through it.

guesser's avatarguesser

Quote: Originally posted by time*treat on Apr 1, 2009

"Skirt the law"? Pffffft. Don't put a loophole there and then complain when someone jumps through it.

Exactly.

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