NASHVILLE, Tenn – A pair of bills working their way through the legislature could cost the state nearly $23 million dollars in lottery sales, if passed.
The bills, HB 3063 and companion bill, SB 2154, seeks to make it illegal to advertise lottery sales on television, radio or billboards.
The bills, introduced by Representative John Ragan (R- Oak Ridge) in the House and Senator Jim Summerville (R- Dickson County) in the Senate, would only allow the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation to place advertisements next to the register where the tickets are sold.
The Tennessee General Assembly Fiscal Review Committee estimates the bill, if passed, could cost the state $22,950,000 in lost revenue.
According to the committee, the lottery gains approximately ten dollars in revenue for every dollar they spend on advertising.
The Senate version of the bill is expected to go before the State and Local Government Committee on Tuesday.
Information from: WRCB-TV
###
What are your thoughts on these bills? Do you have issue with lottery advertisement on radio/television and on billboards? Interact with us by giving your opinion! Email opinions on this matter to the editor at News@MarionCountyMessenger.com and interact on Facebook as well.
What in the world are these two idiots thinking? Not only is that a lot of money our state can’t afford right now, that’s a lot of money that’s pumped into our state in the form of advertising dollars, thus creating or maintaining jobs in the various communications industries. Why have these two not been run out of town on a rail yet? If this passes, I’ve lost all hope for common sense among our state lawmakers!
I am all for this bill to pass!! Too long have we had people wasting all their money and life savings by gambling it all away. I was opposed to the lottary coming to Tennessee, and my opinoin of it hasn’t changed since. If we can’t make it go away completely at least lets make it go away a little at a time! Is it really helping our schoolchildren anyways? No, it isn’t.
Ms. Morrison,
Please tell me you are kidding? Do you have any idea how much money the Tennessee Education Lottery brings into our state each year? Not to mention the fact that, YES, it DOES indeed help our children by affording them the opportunity to go to college?!?
I understand that you may have religious or moral convictions that make you oppose gambling as a whole, but before you jump to conclusions about whether or not the lottery is viable in our state for children, please do your homework first! Many high school seniors have been given the opportunity to attend college thanks to lottery scholarships that previously weren’t available!
I’m sorry if this wasn’t an option for you or your child(ren), but it was for mine and we’d be up a creek without a paddle had it not been for the lottery scholorship!
I agree with the previous comment in regards to running these politicians out of town on a rail! It’s about time we had some state reps who knew what in the world they were doing! It’s becoming more ridiculous by the day around here!
Ms. Morrison, while I respect your beliefs and agree that many people are gambling too much, I have to say that the TN Lottery is actually a good thing. If it looses money and tanks, I feel like we’re in a boat load of trouble!
We need all the money we can get in Tennessee right now! If anything they should quadruple the amount of advertising they’re doing and offer some bigger pay-outs!
Georgia and other states have billboards, radio ads, television commercials and other means of advertising for their state lottos. Why should Tennessee be any different? I don’t have a problem with it! It doesn’t bother or affect me one bit!
I don’t care about the radio or t.v. commercials, but I wish all billboards would be abolished. They are gawdy and unsightly and shouldn’t be interfering with our beautiful scenic landscapes in the first place.