The Lottery Scholarship fund could run dry, and if the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee’s prediction is correct, funds will dry up by 2014.
The Lottery Fund continues to finance more students and pay more for each student because of tuition hikes. The number of students supported by the Lottery Scholarship has grown 28.5 percent since 2005, with 19,700 students receiving the aid.
Student Financial Aid Director Brian Malone said UNM will decide how to move forward if the Lottery Scholarship is discontinued.
“We are aware of the Lottery funding situation,” he said. “UNM actively works with the state to discuss and evaluate options for the future.”
The committee predicted the Lottery Fund will be cut in half by fiscal year 2012 and will zero out in FY14. The NM State Lottery, which allocated 30 percent of its annual revenue to the Lottery Tuition Fund, is in debt, and declining ticket sales are partially to blame. Since 2006, the lottery profits have decreased $8 million.
Valero Manager Aaron Quick, who works at the gas station on Princeton Drive and Central Avenue, said daily tickets sales have been lower recently. He said only one high jackpot has been paid out since November, and high jackpots usually generate high sales.
“Sales go up when the jackpot goes up,” he said. “A month or two ago, it was over $200 million, and I sold $900 worth in one day, so it really just depends on how large the jackpot is.”
The national jackpot amount grows when no one predicts the Powerball number, Quick said. He said the money compounds until somebody hits the number.
Student Chelsea Worthington said she depends on the Lottery Scholarship to fund her education.
“Without the Lottery Scholarship, the vast majority of graduates from New Mexico high schools would be unable to afford degrees,” she said. “Many students will rely on loans, if they still attend school at all, which will potentially create even more financial hardship for the state.”
State senators are trying to find ways to keep the Lottery Scholarship afloat.
Sen. Stuart Ingle (R-Dist. 27) introduced a bill that would freeze tuition increases for students on the scholarship throughout their time in college. The proposed legislation, Senate Bill 292, was unanimously passed by the Senate Education Committee and now must go through two more committees before reaching the Senate floor. CNM said in the S.B. 292 Fiscal Impact Report that the legislation would positively impact the Lottery Scholarship fund by reducing its expenditure rate increase.
That would make the scholarship program financially viable for longer.
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Provided they don’t take a break, New Mexico high school graduates are eligible for the Lottery Scholarship for eight semesters with no repayment requirements.
Sen. William Payne, (R-Dist. 20) introduced a bill that would allow students to wait a year or more before starting college and maintain their Lottery eligibility. Bill opponents contend it will jeopardize the scholarship’s financial viability.
