The question of whether legislators will create a state lottery is back in play after Rep. Alyce Clarke added an amendment to the appropriations bill for the Mississippi Gaming Commission.
The commission is set to receive just over $8 million in FY 2019, but if the amendment is put into law, they won’t receive any of those funds.
While legislators have opinions on both sides of the issue, Rep. Steve Holland says it is time for there to be a lottery in Mississippi.
“I’d say 70% of the citizens of Mississippi want it,” Holland said. “So let’s give it to them. It’s time and it’s long overdue.”
Rep. Clarke’s amendment states that the money collected from the lottery would go toward funding K-12 education, state aid roads, and municipalities.
Holland added that at this point it is up to the leaders in the House and the Senate as to whether or not the lottery comes about.
“The Gaming Commission is not going to go away,” Holland said. “Are you kidding? There are no state agencies that are going to go away because of a conditional amendment. It’s just a matter of the leadership endorsing it.”
