Lawmakers will return to Montgomery on August 15 for a special session focused on creating a statewide lottery.
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“After we’ve exhausted all other options, I believe this is our best chance to solve this problem”, the governor said.
The Governor released a video Wednesday morning announcing his intention to call a special session to address the state’s funding crisis. Bills calling for another referendum have failed the past few years during legislative sessions.
The Legislature passed a budget over the governor’s veto earlier this year and appropriated $700 million to the Medicaid Agency from the General Fund for the fiscal year starting October 1. For the lottery proposal to appear on the November ballot, the measure must clear both houses by August 24.
He is proposing they pass a constitutional amendment calling for a public vote on a state operated lottery.
Speculation had mounted for weeks that Bentley would propose the lottery that he projects will raise about $220- million annually.
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In an opinion piece published Thursday, Bentley likened the lottery to a leisure suit, an outdated trend that Alabama has to “suck in (its) gut and squeeze into”. Voters rejected a lottery proposal in 1999 amid heavy opposition from church groups.
