Week in Review

State Capitol Week in Review
May 8, 2009
LITTLE ROCK – The two main government bodies that will oversee the new Arkansas lottery held their first meetings, and are on pace to put lottery tickets on sale by the end of the year.
College scholarships funded by the lottery should be available for students enrolled in the fall semester of 2010.
The entity that will have day-to-day control of the lottery is the nine-member Lottery Commission. Members were appointed by the governor, the President Pro Tem of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The Commission held its historic first meeting and elected Ray Thornton to be its first chairman. Thornton is a former U.S. Congressman who also has been a justice on the Arkansas Supreme Court.
The Commission will hire staff to operate the lottery on a day-to-day basis. It will determine the frequency of Arkansas lotteries, the types of games and the amounts of prizes. The Commission will determine whether Arkansas joins other states in lotteries that offer multi-million prizes.
The other government body with oversight authority is a 12-member legislative committee, known as the Arkansas Lottery Commission Legislative Oversight Committee. It also met for the first time last week.
The legislative committee will get annual audits of lottery operations. Also, the committee will get regular reports from the Higher Education Department on the number of college students who are eligible for scholarships under the lottery. Scholarship amounts will vary, depending on the sales of lottery tickets. They will be awarded through an existing program that will be greatly expanded. It is the Academic Challenge Scholarships Program.
The legislative committee will review and make necessary changes in scholarship amounts, and in eligibility criteria, in order to maximize financial aid to college students.
Act 605 of 2009 is the scholarship law. The legislature enacted the 117-page bill during the regular session. Act 605 implements the constitutional amendment approved by Arkansas voters last year, which authorized the legislature to establish a lottery for college scholarships.
The legislative oversight committee will review major procurement contracts the Commission signs. It also will review proposed rules, and will make sure lottery proceeds are spent according to Act 605.
Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter took an active role in getting the lottery measure approved, and on the final day of the 2009 regular session the Senate publicly commended him for his efforts. Halter was invited to speak from the well of the Senate, where speeches are made.
Although the lieutenant governor presides over the Senate and works closely with senators every day, it is extremely rare for a lieutenant governor to make a speech to the body from the well.
Act 605 authorizes the Lottery Commission to hire 20 employees. The positions include an executive director, a chief operating officer, a legal counsel, an auditor, a sales and retail specialist, a marketing specialist, a fiscal officer, an information technology director and support staff.