Deukmejian Appoints Five to Run California’s Lottery : Sales Not Expected ‘Til Summer

SACRAMENTO —  Almost eight weeks past the deadline, Gov. George Deukmejian today appointed the five-member California State Lottery Commission to run the games approved by voters last November.

Deukmejian said he will meet with the commissioners for the first time later today.

“I plan to immediately discuss the selection of the lottery commission’s executive director with the nominees,” he said. “It shouldn’t take very long. We’ve already gotten the names of some very good prospects.”

Filling the $70,000-a-year full-time post is a prerequisite to deciding on which games to offer and hiring lottery companies to print tickets, handle publicity and choose local ticket sellers.

2 Deadlines Missed

The initiative approved by voters in November required the commission and director to be named by Dec. 6, with ticket sales to begin by March 21. However, there is no penalty for missing the deadlines.

Three of the appointees are Republicans and two are Democrats. All must be confirmed by the Senate. Deukmejian said he had not cleared the appointees with the Senate before making the nominations.

None of the nominees has statewide name recognition, although Deukmejian noted that all have the management, law enforcement and public service experience needed to run a billion-dollar industry.

Staggered Terms

The commission members, serving staggered terms of from one to five years, are:

--William J. Johnston, 58, of Los Angeles, a Republican who is a former superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

--Laverta S. Montgomery, 48, a Republican who has been the city manager of Compton since 1982.

--John M. Price, 65, of Mendocino, a Democrat who served as Sacramento County district attorney for 20 years. Price fulfills the voter-approved lottery initiative’s requirement that at least one commissioner have more than five years of law enforcement experience.

--Howard E. Varner, 59, of Pacific Palisades, a Republican who is chairman and former president of Host International Inc. of Santa Monica, a restaurant chain.

--Kennard W. Webster, 64, of the Palm Springs suburb of Bermuda Dunes, a Democrat who is a former partner in the accounting firm of Deloitte Haskins & Sells. Webster fulfills the lottery initiative’s requirement that one commissioner be a certified public accountant.

Deukmejian selected the length of commissioners’ terms by pulling names out of a large tan cowboy hat in what he called his “first lottery.” Montgomery and Johnston will serve five years each; Price, four years; Webster, three years, and Varner, two years.

“No one can say I picked Republicans to serve for longer periods,” Deukmejian said after the drawing.

Although commissioners will serve staggered terms initially, subsequent appointments will be for five years.

Full-Time Work

The commissioners will receive $100 per day for meetings and additional compensation for expenses. The commission is expected to work virtually full time until the first tickets go on sale--probably no earlier than summer.

Deukmejian said appointment of commissioners was delayed while authorities conducted thorough criminal background checks on candidates. The Republican governor, who opposed the lottery initiative, could suffer political embarrassment if his appointees become controversial.

California’s almost 24 million people are expected to spend up to $1.7 billion annually once the lottery is in full swing, based on per capita sales and figures of established lotteries.