A state audit of the Georgia Lottery Corporation (GLC) recommends some changes to reduce expenses.

The Athens Banner-Herald reports Georgia sells more lottery tickets per capita than all but one other state lottery.

In fiscal 2016, 1.1 billion dollars in lottery money went back to the state of Georgia to fund pre-kindergarten and the HOPE scholarship programs.

Still, as more students qualify for HOPE, the scholarship covers a declining percentage of costs.

The state legislature requested the audit.

After prizes, the corporation's largest expense is the money paid to the contractors running the games. GLC has maintained a decades-long relationship with Scientific Games and International Game Technology.  Auditors recommend bidding out those contracts periodically instead of renegotiating with the same contractors.

Auditors also conclude GLC spends more money on lottery advertising than other states and may want to re-evaluate its advertising expenditures.

Georgia Lottery Corporation paid out more than $700,000 in employee bonuses in fiscal 2016.  State lawmakers imposed limits on bonuses in 2011 as part of a HOPE scholarship overhaul.

By law, the goal of the lottery is to earmark 35 percent of sales for state education programs.  The Athens paper reports the lottery hasn't hit that mark in years.

The full audit is posted online by the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts.