LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The Arkansas Senate voted unanimously Wednesday to abolish the independent commission running the state’s lottery and put the games under the governor’s control, a move its sponsor says is aimed at staving off a drop in revenue for college scholarships.
The Senate voted 34-0 to put the lottery under the state Department of Finance and Administration and make the director of the games an appointee of the governor. It would abolish the nine-member commission, appointed by the governor and legislative leaders, that currently makes most decisions about the lottery’s operations.
Arkansas voters approved the lottery in 2008 to raise money for college scholarships, with ticket sales beginning the next year. The amount of money raised for those scholarships, however, has declined in recent years.
The proposal moved quickly through the Senate, with no debate. The proposal now heads to the House. Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, said last month he’d support moving the games under DFA.
“I think everybody realizes the situation we’re in and understands the importance of correcting it,” Republican Sen. Jimmy Hickey, who sponsored the legislation, told reporters after the vote.
Hickey is pushing the change as he’s also calling for stiffening the requirements for receiving the college scholarships funded by the lottery. He has said he expects to bring that proposal before a Senate panel in the coming weeks.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press.
