Great Push Back against Bill Halter’s Lottery…Allow me to wet your appetite with the opening statement…Halter is turning out to be what a lot of us thought he would be…A one trick pony..,.This amendment should pass with all the money that a few families have put behind it…On the off chance that it doesn’t pass you can kiss Halter goodbye 2 years from now…
Despite promises by lottery supporters that a lottery
would be an economic windfall to the state, a lottery
would not be good for Arkansas. It would not raise nearly
as much money for the state as lottery proponents
contend and would have a host of negative consequences
for the state’s poorest residents. Arkansas Advocates for
Children and Families (AACF) estimates that a lottery
could bring approximately $61.5 million in revenue to
the state to fund college scholarships–nearly 40 percent
lower than Lt. Governor Bill Halter’s latest estimate of
$100 million, and much more in line with the
Department of Finance and Administration’s estimate of
$55 million. AACF arrived at this estimate by analyzing
lottery revenue in similar and surrounding states,
subtracting the costs of prizes and administration of the
lottery, and considering any tax implications for state
revenue overall. The state could actually see even less of
this revenue: as ticket sales rise, so do the social and
economic costs associated with gambling, such as
treatment for gambling addictions.
