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Arkansas voters get first lottery-only proposal
Arkansas banned lotteries even before state lawmakers determined how to properly pronounce the state's name. The 1874 ban held through the era of Hot Springs' illegal casinos and their destruction at the hands of sledgehammer-wielding state troopers nearly a century later. In the time since, attempts to legalize a government-run lottery always included bringing back casino games or something else just as unpalatable for a state squarely in the nation's Bible Belt. Now, though, a proposal b ...
Oct 31, 2008, 7:24 pm - Todd - Lottery News forum

Arkansas lottery certified for November ballot
The Arkansas secretary of state's office certified a proposed constitutional amendment for the November ballot Monday that would allow voters to decide Lt. Gov. Bill Halter's measure for a state-run lottery to fund college scholarships. Only an anti-democratic move from some other party to try to get this initiative thrown off the ballot will deny Arkansas voters the right and the opportunity to decide this issue for themselves, Halter said at a Capitol news conference announcing certificat ...
Jul 23, 2008, 9:18 am - Todd - Lottery News forum

Georgia Lottery had record sales
A struggling economy hasn't kept Georgians from buying lottery tickets. The Georgia Lottery announced Tuesday that sales for fiscal 2008, which ended June 30, were just under $3.52 billion, a record in the 15-year history of the games. That's more than $97.6 million ahead of last year's record sales. The Georgia Lottery transferred $858 million of that to the state for education programs, surpassing last year's record transfer by more than $4.8 million. Lottery proceeds pay for t ...
Jul 15, 2008, 7:48 pm - Todd - Lottery News forum

Arkansas watches as Tenn rethinks lottery scholarships
If Lt. Gov. Bill Halter's push for a state lottery is successful, Arkansas legislators may want to consider Tennessee's dilemma before writing rules for spending proceeds that would be earmarked exclusively for college scholarships. Arkansas' eastern neighbor is struggling with what to do with an unintended $460 million surplus from that state's version of a scholarship lottery. Part of the problem is that many scholarship recipients have not been able to maintain grades good enough to keep t ...
Apr 14, 2008, 10:21 am - Todd - Lottery News forum

Tennessee Gov. wants to spend lottery reserve
Excess money would be distributed to school districts Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen said Thursday the state lottery's huge cash reserves need to be distributed. Bredesen, a Democrat, has abandoned last year's proposal to create a $100 million pool that would have served as collateral to improve credit ratings for school districts, he told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday. The legislature wanted to spend it, they didn't want to put it aside to enhance credit, Bredesen said. ...
Jan 11, 2008, 7:12 am - Todd - Lottery News forum