Arkansas Lottery Launches Flurry of New Scratch-Off Tickets

Arkansas Lottery

We have written time and again about how the Arkansas Lottery continues to try to prop up sales by constantly rolling out new scratch-off tickets.

Scratch-off tickets are controversial, because they are tied to problem gambling and gambling addiction.

A 2015 study in Canada described them as “paper slot machines.” 

A 2018 study published in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions found a link between how often a person played scratch-off tickets and the severity of a person’s gambling problem.

Since mid-April, the Arkansas Lottery has unveiled five new scratch-off tickets — some of which cost as much as $10 each.

These types of scratch-off tickets prey on the poor and desperate by offering long odds on big jackpots.

In April, net sales for instant lottery tickets — such as scratch-off tickets — jumped after COVID-19 stimulus checks began arriving in Arkansas.

Despite all of this, the Arkansas Lottery still relies very heavily on scratch-off tickets.

When all is said and done, the vast majority of the money from the Arkansas Lottery’s scratch-off tickets pays for prizes for lottery players.

As long as the Arkansas Lottery continues to operate this way, it will keep on preying on the poor and desperate, and the Lottery’s scholarship funding will remain dismal.

Photo Credit: YouTube.

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Lottery Ticket Sales Jump As Stimulus Checks Arrive

Arkansas Lottery

Ticket sales for the Arkansas Lottery rose in the later part of April, after Arkansans began receiving economic stimulus checks, according to documents Family Council obtained via the Freedom of Information Act.

Family Council recently sent the Arkansas Lottery Office a Freedom of Information Act request asking for weekly ticket sales information from March 29 to April 25.

The reports show that from March 29 to April 4, Arkansas Lottery instant ticket net sales were about $9 million.

During the week of April 5 to April 11, instant ticket net sales dropped to $8.9 million.

From April 12 to April 18, net sales for instant lottery tickets rose to more than $9.8 million.

And during the week of April 19 to April 25, net sales for instant lottery tickets surpassed $11 million.

Across the board, Arkansas lottery ticket sales jumped during the week of April 19 – April 25, compared to previous weeks.

It’s impossible to know how many lottery tickets were bought using COVID-19 stimulus money the federal government sent to Arkansans, but it seems like more than just a coincidence that lottery ticket sales would jump after these checks began arriving.

News outlets have similarly reported that in Texas state lottery ticket sales saw a boost after stimulus checks were deposited.

It’s no secret that gambling preys on the poor and desperate, and state-run lotteries like Arkansas’ are no exception.

That’s why groups like Stop Predatory Gambling have called on state officials to suspend their state-run lotteries temporarily as taxpayers receive relief checks.

Otherwise money that is meant to help taxpayers make ends meet during these challenging times could end up being wasted on losing lottery tickets.

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