Arkansas Lottery vending machine plan draws criticism

The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery has been embroiled in controversy ever since Lt. Gov. Bill Halter proposed the lottery two years ago.

Let’s face it, lotteries are controversial, but in Arkansas they are also citizen-approved, notes Roby Brock in this report from TalkBusiness.net.

After advancing from instant tickets to Powerball to other lottery games, Executive Director Ernie Passailaigue has made his arguments for new lottery ideas to legislators and the public. The latest endeavor? Vending machines that will bring the lottery to new retail venues like big box stores.

Calling them "the wave of the future," the lottery director wants a legislative oversight committee to bless the newest proposed outlet for lottery ticket sales.

“The vending machines allow us to get into venues that we couldn’t get into before like large box retails – like a Wal-Mart – I am not saying Wal-Mart – but like a Wal-Mart or a Target or a Costco, that type of thing, because their business models will not allow those lines to take place over their normal commerce," Passailaigue said during a recent interview with a Little Rock radio station.

Jerry Cox with the anti-gambling Arkansas Family Council, which has opposed all versions of the lottery, is raising concerns about its potential toll on Arkansans.

“The truth is, children are going to illegally purchase lottery tickets if Arkansas welcomes vending machines,” Cox said in a press release. “The Arkansas Lottery Commission continues to talk about safeguards, like having to swipe a driver’s license, but this will not be enough to effectively prevent children from buying tickets. All they would have to do is borrow a driver’s license from an 18-year-old friend or take one out of their parent’s wallet.”

But Passailaigue dismissed these concerns as coming from those that opposed the lottery in the first place, even referring to Cox as “a high priced lobbyist on the other side who tries to do his best to detract from college scholarships going to Arkansans.”

Passailaigue earns $324,000 a year as the lottery director.

An Aug. 26 legislative meeting is scheduled to hear more on the vending machine proposal.