Today at 3:29 a.m.
by Michael R. Wickline

The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery’s revenue in November increased to $46.8 million compared with the $44.9 million total during the same month in 2023 as the scratch-off ticket revenue and the draw-game revenue both showed year-over-year increases.
The amount raised for college scholarships in November narrowly dipped to $8.9 million from $9.1 million in the same month last year.
The lottery reported these figures Tuesday in its monthly report to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the Legislative Council’s lottery oversight subcommittee.
The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery has been selling tickets since Sept. 28, 2009, and has helped finance Arkansas Challenge Scholarships for more than 30,000 college students during 11 of the past 14 fiscal years.
The lottery’s scratch-off revenue in November increased to $37.6 million from $37 million in the same month a year ago and the lottery’s draw-game revenue increased to $9.1 million from $7.8 million in the same month a year ago, the lottery reported.
The lottery’s scratch-off ticket revenue and draw-game ticker revenue in November and the amount raised for college scholarships in November exceeded the lottery’s projections for the month, lottery officials said.
Mike Smith, the lottery’s gaming director, said Tuesday that the lottery’s scratch-off and draw-game ticket sales both performed well in November.
“Our $20 games are selling pretty well,” he said, referring to scratch-off tickets. “This year, we had a new $20 (game called Million Dollar Jackpot) that came out Oct. 29 and just continued to sell well throughout November. We still have last year’s $20 in market, which is coming down to the end, but I think people are chasing the last top prize (of $1 million) on it.”
In November, the lottery’s revenue for the LOTTO draw-game tickets totaled $1.28 million — compared with $437,150 in the same month a year ago — and the lottery’s revenue for the Mega Millions draw game tickets totaled $1.74 million, compared with $1.32 million in the same month a year ago, according to the lottery’s reports.
In November, the lottery’s revenue for the Powerball jackpot tickets totaled $1.65 million — compared with $2.19 million in the same month a year ago — reports showed.
The LOTTO jackpot is now about $4.5 million and that’s a record amount, according to lottery officials.
The lottery started the LOTTO jackpot game in September 2022.
The lottery’s other draw-game tickets are Cash 3, Cash 4, Fast Play, Lucky for Life and Natural State Jackpot.
Lottery Director Sharon Strong said the lottery raised a total of $9.1 million for college scholarships in November, after factoring in unclaimed prizes, and that exceeded the lottery’s projections by about $622,000.
Smith noted that the lottery had a $1 million prize winner in early November.
November is the fifth month of fiscal 2025.
During this period, the lottery’s revenue totaled $243.5 million compared with $255.6 million in the same period in fiscal 2024, according to the lottery’s reports.
So far in fiscal 2025, the lottery’s total revenue has exceeded the lottery’s projections by almost $12 million, said Jerry Fetzer, the lottery’s chief fiscal officer.
During the first five months of fiscal 2025, the lottery’s scratch-off ticket revenue reached $195.3 million compared with $192.7 million in the same period in fiscal 2024, while the lottery’s draw-game revenue reached $47.9 million compared with $62.5 million in the same period in in fiscal 2024, according to the lottery’s reports.
“Last year at this time we had had three billion dollar-plus jackpots,” Fetzer said Tuesday. “(Fiscal) year-to-date our biggest jackpot is going right now, which is (Mega Millions’ jackpot of) $619 million.”
If one factored out the Powerball and Mega Millions draw game ticket sales, “we would be up fiscal year to date in draw game sales,” Smith said.
So far in fiscal 2025, the lottery reported raising $39.5 million for college scholarships compared with $49 million in the same period in fiscal 2023.
Under state law, at the end of the fiscal year, the lottery transfers its unclaimed prize reserve balance minus $1 million to college scholarships.
The lottery’s unclaimed prize reserve balance totaled $6.8 million on Nov. 30 after receiving $175,571 in unclaimed prize money in November, according to the lottery.
So far in fiscal 2025, the amount raised for college scholarships, including unclaimed prizes, is $1.5 million better than the lottery’s projections, Scott Hardin, spokesman for the state Department of Finance and Administration, said.
For fiscal 2025, the lottery has projected $570 million in total revenue and raising $106.7 million for college scholarships.
In fiscal 2024, the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery raised $129.1 million for college scholarships, which is the largest amount the lottery has produced for college scholarships in any fiscal year since it started selling tickets in 2009.
Fiscal 2024 is the third fiscal year the lottery has eclipsed raising $100 million for college scholarships.
In fiscal 2024, the lottery’s total revenue reached $613.6 million, which lagged only the $632.5 million in revenue collected in fiscal 2021 based on the lottery’s reports. In fiscal 2021, lottery officials attributed the lottery’s performance in part to factors brought on by the covid-19 pandemic, such as people spending more time at home.
SCHOLARSHIPS
Kim Mundell, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Education, said 27,502 students have been awarded Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships and $50.7 million has been disbursed to the students so far in fiscal 2025.
Of this amount, 9,269 students have been awarded Arkansas Academic Challenge Plus scholarships at an award amount totaling $10.1 million, she said.
In fiscal 2024, the Division of Higher Education handed out Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships totaling $75.8 million to 26,117 students, according to the Department of Education. Fiscal 2024 is the third consecutive fiscal year in the past 14 fiscal years that Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships were awarded to fewer than 30,000 students.
The amount handed out for the Academic Challenge Scholarships peaked at $132.9 million in fiscal 2013, with awards going to 33,353 students. Scholarship totals have dropped largely because the Legislature cut the amount of initial scholarships several times. The Arkansas Academic Challenge scholarships are financed with lottery proceeds, plus $20 million a year in state general revenue.
Act 386 of 2023 created the Arkansas Challenge Plus Scholarship program to provide additional funds for students based on their financial need. Under Act 386 of 2023, the sum of an Arkansas Challenge Plus Scholarship and Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship won’t exceed $5,000 for each eligible student in an academic year.
Under Act 1105 of 2015, the scholarship size for Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship recipients is $1,000 for the freshman year at two- and four-year colleges. The scholarship size is $3,000 for recipients for the sophomore year at a two-year college, $4,000 for the sophomore and junior years at four-year colleges and $5,000 for the senior year at four-year colleges.
In 2017, the Legislature created the Workforce Challenge Scholarship to use excess proceeds to provide up to $800 per year for students enrolled in programs that lead to qualifications in high-demand occupations.
So far in fiscal 2025, the Division of Higher Education has awarded Workforce Challenge Scholarships to 437 students and disbursed $859,575, Mundell said.
For fiscal 2024, the Division of Higher Education handed out Workforce Challenge Scholarships totaling $882,070 to 1,133 students, according to the division.
In 2019, the Legislature created the Concurrent Challenge program that allows high school juniors and seniors to receive the scholarships for a semester or an academic year in which they are enrolled in an endorsed concurrent course or certain programs.
So far in fiscal 2025, the Division of Higher Education has awarded Concurrent Challenge Scholarships to 3,176 students and disbursed $1.9 million, Mundell said. For fiscal 2024, the division handed out Concurrent Challenge Scholarships totaling $3.8 million to 9,747 students, according to the state Department of Education.
The Lottery Scholarship Trust Account had a balance of $312.1 million on Nov. 30, the lottery reported.
In the Nov. 5 general election, Arkansas voters handily approved a proposed constitutional amendment to clear the way for Arkansas’s lottery proceeds to be used for scholarships and grants for student enrollment in vocational technical schools and technical institutes. The constitutional amendment was referred to voters by the state Legislature during the 2023 regular session.
In 2008, Arkansas voters approved Amendment 87 to the Arkansas Constitution, which limits proceeds from the state’s lottery scholarship being used for those enrolled in public and private nonprofit two- and four-year colleges and universities in Arkansas.
During the regular session starting Jan. 13, state lawmakers will consider enabling legislation to implement the constitutional amendment.

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