Arkansas Considers Lottery
Thursday, February 01, 2007 posted 10:30 AM EST
Little Rock, Ark. -- A statewide lottery to raise millions of dollars for college scholarships and teacher bonuses was proposed Wednesday by Lt. Gov. Bill Halter.
Halter said he hopes Arkansans will be able to vote in 2008 on an amendment to the state constitution -- which bars most forms of gambling -- that would allow the lottery.
A spokesman for Gov. Mike Beebe said the governor would support
letting voters decide.
Standing with 14 state representatives at a news conference Wednesday, Halter said a statewide lottery could provide the dollars needed to send more Arkansas students two- and four-year colleges and vocational schools. Though past efforts to start a lottery have failed, Halter said the time is right because proceeds would be dedicated to education.
"We have to break out of the position that we've been in for literally my entire life and everybody standing up here and everyone in this room," Halter said. "We have to be willing to take some risks and do things different." Halter proposed the lottery last year while running for lieutenant governor.
Rep. Will Bond, D-Little Rock, filed a bill Wednesday to bring the constitutional amendment before voters. Separately, another constitutional amendment filed Wednesday would allow the Legislature to begin meeting in 2010 in even-numbered years for 30-day "fiscal sessions." Legislators currently meet every other year.
While the bill does not offer specifics on how the lottery would operate, Halter said he could foresee a system being run by a state lottery commission, funded by 5 percent of the lottery's net revenue. After winners were paid, the rest would go toward education.
Halter acknowledged it was hard to know how much such a lottery could raise in Arkansas. However, if the state achieved the average per capita net proceeds of Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas lotteries, it could mean $100 million annually for education.
Currently, 42 states and the District of Columbia have a lottery system, Halter said.
Pointing to Murphy Oil Co.'s recent promise of $50 million in scholarships to students in El Dorado, Halter said a statewide lottery could provide the similar benefits to students too hard-pressed by finances to attend college or technical schools.
"I would say to you that many Arkansans who want to play the lottery already do -- they just drive across state lines to do it," Halter said. "I believe we should keep those funds here in the state of Arkansas to help educate our kids."
How far the bill will go remains in question. While Halter presides over the Senate, no senators attended the Wednesday news conference. Halter said no senators attended because he hadn't yet approached them about the bill. No senators had signed onto Bond's bill Wednesday as co-sponsors.
Sen. Steve Faris, who chairs the Senate committee that would hear a lottery proposal if it passes out of the House, said he had not been contacted by Halter, but would be happy to talk to Halter if he wanted.
"I would support the concept of letting the people decide whether we need a lottery or not," said Faris, D-Malvern. "I think in these days of unfulfilled court mandates that cost millions of dollars, we need to look at any alternative revenues source the people might approve in lieu of their taxes being raised."
Matt DeCample, a spokesman for Beebe, said the governor continued to recognize the two sides of the lottery debate, but would support the idea of voters making a decision.
Arkansas also has an uneasy history with gambling measures. Voters only last year authorized bingo and raffles for established charities. In 1996 and 2000, voters rejected similar measures because they would have allowed for casinos and a state lottery. And while casinos operate in neighboring Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi and Oklahoma, electronic gaming machines only came to Arkansas' two racetracks last year.
Halter and the gathered representatives mentioned the moral concerns about gambling, but also stressed the moral obligation to provide education and better lives for the state's children. "I am not afraid of giving the citizens of Arkansas the opportunity to decide this for themselves," Halter said. "I hope those folks who may have different opinions about this aren't afraid of democracy either."
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