The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration has released the December 2018 lottery retail sales by county.
In the report, Columbia County sales totaled $356,840. Of that number, 81 percent of tickets sold were categorized as instant settlements, or scratch-offs, at $290,220. Cash 3 and Powerball made up the second-highest revenues with $14,087.50 and $13,867, respectfully, followed by Fast Play at $12,643 and Mega Millions at $11,497. The remaining funds were rounded out by games Cash 4 at $7,428.50, Natural State Jackpot with $4,189, and Lucky for Life at $2,908.
Total county lotto sales were up last month from November when $317,045 in tickets were purchased.
In neighboring Lafayette County, the numbers yielded similar results, when accounting lotto sales splits. The county totaled $92,148. Of that, $71,253, or 77 percent, came from instant settlements. The county in December also topped the previous month by $45,870, when November totaled $271,175.50.
Neither county, though, came close to Ouachita and Union Counties, in terms of sales. In December, Ouachita, with virtually the same population as Columbia (23,868 compared to the latter at 23,627, according to 2017 U.S. Census Bureau stats) nearly doubled the amount of revenues spent in December on lottery games.
Last month, Ouachita County purchased $671,343 in total tickets, with $579,408 spent in instant settlements. Union County, with a population of nearly 39,500 residents, dwarfed both of its Golden Triangle regional neighbors, when it took in $1,025,044.50, with $840,617 in instant settlements. With its December total figures, Union County was one of only 12 counties in the state to break the $1 million dollar threshold.
The highest sales in the state last month were seen in Pulaski County, with its $8.024 million in tickets sold, while the state’s lowest sales came in Montgomery County with $31,398.
The trend of scratch-off tickets accounting for the majority of state lotto sales was never more evident than it was as the new year began. According to recent news release from the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL), the agency in the first week of January saw record sales for instant games, with $9.1 million in tickets sold. The figure is the highest for that time period since the lotto began in 2009. The total amount for the week exceeded $11 million.
“January is typically the month we see our instant ticket sales increase and continue throughout the Spring,” said ASL Director Bishop Woosley. “December was our best December for instant ticket sales ever (more than $38.1 million), so hopefully, this trend is an indicator that our instant ticket sales may be even stronger this Spring than last.”
Woosley said he attributed the recent sales successes to new games, along with creative advertising to go along with low gas prices and a good economy.
So far this fiscal year, the ASL is up more than $7 million in instant ticket sales and more than $18 million in draw game sales versus budget.
The lottery in the fiscal year 2018, which ended in June, had its best sales and revenues ever. Sales reached moire than $499 million, and revenue was $500 million. So far in fiscal year 2019, ASL’s total sales have increased 4.6 percent.