The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery's retailers would be granted the option of accepting debit cards to pay for lottery tickets under legislation that zipped through an Arkansas Senate committee Thursday.
State law now limits lottery retailers to accepting only cash for ticket purchases.
In a voice vote with no audible dissenters, the Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee recommended Senate approval of Senate Bill 617 by Sen. Trent Garner, R-El Dorado, after about six minutes of discussion.
The legislation would allow a business to decide whether to allow lottery customers to use debit cards and require a minimum purchase, or whether to accept only cash for ticket purchases, Garner told the Senate committee.
Under SB617, a retailer may choose whether to accept cash and "noncash, noncredit methods of payment, including ... debit cards or other electronic transfer of funds of the consumer to the retailer." The bill would bar buying tickets with in-store credit, credit cards, charge cards or any form of deferred payment.
Thirty-nine states with lotteries, plus Puerto Rico, allow the use of debit cards to buy tickets, while Maryland, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Wyoming and Arkansas don't, lottery Director Bishop Woosley said after the meeting.
Garner said the legislation is supported by Murphy USA, Kum & Go and other retailers, plus Gov. Asa Hutchinson, the Department of Finance and Administration, and the lottery. The lottery is within the finance department, which reports to the governor.
In an interview after the meeting, Hutchinson said allowing the use of debit cards and not credit cards on lottery ticket purchases "is just an adjustment for today's economy, technology and lifestyle. Also, it is easier for the retailers to utilize that, so it makes sense."
Hutchinson said "it remains to be seen" whether the lottery would see more ticket sales by allowing retailers to accept debit cards for ticket sales, "but you're making it more convenient to the consumers, so there could be additional use. But the immediate advantage is that the lottery is having a hard time attracting new retailers, and so this would make it easier for retailers to consider whether they want to do that or not."
The lottery has more than 1,900 retailers that sell tickets.
Woosley said the agency has no projection on the potential revenue impact of the bill.
"We believe it will increase sales to some extent, but the reasoning behind the bill is to accommodate changing consumer trends, one of which is the move from the use of cash to other forms of payment. This will allow us to remain relevant to our players," Woosley said.
"If this passes, we have plans for a soft launch next fiscal year. However, retailers would be allowed to begin accepting debit [cards] as soon as the law becomes effective," he said. The bill would become effective 90 days after the legislative session ends.
But Family Council President Jerry Cox, who has been a critic of the lottery, said, "Buying lottery tickets with plastic of any kind is a very bad idea."
The lottery started selling tickets on Sept. 28, 2009. Its revenue has helped pay for more than 30,000 Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships during each of the past seven fiscal years. Those scholarships also are financed with $20 million a year in general revenue and a $20 million lottery reserve fund.
In other lottery-related action, the Senate on Thursday voted 32-0 to approve Senate Bill 518, by Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, that would create the Arkansas Workforce Challenge Scholarship.
Hickey said his bill would create $800 scholarships for college students in associate degree or certificate programs in a high-demand field in industry, health care or information technology.
The scholarships would be funded with "excess funds" from the lottery beyond what's needed to pay for Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships for traditional and nontraditional students, Hickey said.
A Section on 03/10/2017