Already falling short, Oklahoma Lottery sales could suffer even more from Arkansas competition
A proposed lottery in Arkansas would devote more sales revenue to prizes, giving it a critical advantage over Oklahoma's game, Oklahoma's lottery director says.
Oklahoma law requires 35 percent of sales revenue to go to the state, reducing the size of jackpots, making the game less attractive, hurting sales and ultimately resulting in less money for the state, lottery director Jim Scroggins told lottery trustees Tuesday.
The Arkansas lottery, if approved by voters on Nov. 4 wouldn't require a fixed percentage of revenue to go to the state. This would allow it to generate bigger jackpots and more sales, Scroggins said.
Lt. Gov. Jim Halter, the main proponent of the Arkansas lottery proposal, wants Arkansas to avoid such a fixed percentage mandate "because it's proven to be ineffective in other states."
As of December, Oklahoma ranked last in prize payouts among the Unites States' 41 lotteries, and the state ranked 39th in per-capita profit.
In fiscal year 2008, the state collected $71.6 million from the lottery, which was $14.6 million below projections made in early 2007, according to the Office of State Finance.
This year's projection of lottery collections in Oklahoma is $72.8 million. So far, sales are below last year's.
Lottery officials tried during this year's legislative session to get the 35 percent restriction removed, but the bill didn't make it out of committee.
Six of Oklahoma's top 10 lottery retailers are along the Arkansas border.
If Arkansas creates a lottery and makes available larger prizes than Oklahoma, not only would Oklahoma lose most of its sales to Arkansas residents, but many more Oklahomans likely would spend their lottery allowance in Arkansas, Scroggins said.
ARKANSAS if you can read this, please put Washington State Match4 game in your state, you need to, instead of Pick4...This is why Washington as a state prospers and you don't...
http://www.walottery.com/sections/LotteryGames/Match4.aspx?Page=HowPlay
I know when North Carolina started it's lottery in October 2006 that Virginia and South Carolina lost alot of sales from NC
Why do I get this feeling that the Oklahoma lottery commission will be hiring a group to make commercials to air in Arkansas opposing the forming a lottery there..........
Good point. Or maybe they should try this one:
https://www.lotterypost.com/news/179324
I like that game.
ARKANSAS if you are listening and can read this...Place Washington State Match4, Florida MegaMoney (pick5), Pick6 you put Win For Life, and for lotto you put a regular lotto that pays million from 1 to 54...That's the best deal any state can get...I don't know if your population can suport it, but i don't know U.S states population but Massachussetts is smaller than you in land size...
This is what you need....This is the best deal that any state can get...Wish Nevada had this deal too....
Lottery officials tried during this year's legislative session to get the 35 percent restriction removed, but the bill didn't make it out of committee.
There is no other word for this but " GREED ". Plain and simple.
The ratio that the State takes out should be as low as possible, especially since some prizes also are taxable, the REAL takeout can be in the 70's! The less the takeout is then the better your system/algorithm will perform and some systems that can't turn profit elsewhere might do so with a lower takeout. Since the takeout in nj is about 50% the 35% would be celebrated here. And as for adding a "Match 4", that's a Jackpot game vs. a digit game so it shouldn't have to replace Pick-4 but be just an additional game. In PA they have Quinto now, which didn't replace Cash 5 or Treasure Hunt. Be like PA and have a zillion different games if you want. Question, will the AK lottery be computerized?
Arkansa what you also need to put please if you are reading this is 30 dollars scratchoffs and 20 dollars scratchoffs...Let the 30 dollar scratchoff pay 1 million for life just like Massachussetts have its billion dollar blockbuster scratchoff, but instead you take 20 or 25 million dollars you place it in the bank and this way you can have a lot of them....And with the 20 dollar scratchoff you give away 10,000 dollars a week for life just like New York Win for Life Spectacular....Arkansa please listen you need this...
What Arkansa needs is to Place Washington State Match4, Florida MegaMoney (pick5), Pick6 you put Win For Life, and for lotto you put a regular lotto that pays million from 1 to 54, and West Virginia's Cash25 or Virginia's Cash5 even though i am in favor of West Virginia's Cash25 and PIck3.....NOW THAT'S THE BEST DEAL FOR ANY STATE...THAT'S THE BEST DEAL ANY STATE CAN GET...
More and more states will dump the traditional pick four for the WA state style pick four. It has to due to the large payouts with numbers like 1234, 7777, etc.
I don't think people will cross over into Arkansas to play multi-state lotto games like Powerball or Hot Lotto, or any of the lotto games. With the multi-state games it doesn't matter where you buy the ticket. And lotto games like Pick 3 operate pretty much the same in most states.
However, a few people near the border may go over to Arkansas to buy scratch off tickets if their scratch offs appear to have better pay rates than Oklahoma.
There will be some lost revenue for Oklahoma (and Missouri as well) if Arkansas adopts a lottery.