Lottery Corp. presses forward to offer tickets by Dec. 1

It’s time to get the Mississippi lottery system up and running, with the first tickets scheduled to go on sale Dec. 1.

To ensure that those tickets will be ready, the Mississippi Lottery Corporation has issued two requests for proposals (RFP) for systems that will allow both online and physical, brick and mortar ticket sales

The Mississippi Legislature passed a lottery bill in August of last year, on the fourth day of a special session. Gov. Phil Bryant called the session primarily to find ways to fund much needed infrastructure repairs to the state’s roads and bridges.

Initial plans were to offer scratch-off tickets first, followed soon thereafter with the addition of national Powerball and Mega Millions games.

At the time they passed the bill, lawmakers estimated that a state lottery could generate about $40 million in its first year and $80 million in subsequent years. The first $80 million collected in any given year until July 2028 would go to the state’s highway fund, and any funds in excess of $80 million would go to “the Education Enhancement Fund for the purposes of funding the Early Childhood Learning Collaborative, the Classroom Supply Fund and/or other educational purposes,” according to the bill. After July 2028, the first $80 million would go to the state’s general fund.

Interested parties should go to the Mississippi Lottery Corporation website for copies of the RFPs and additional information.