New Mexico Lottery on Monday announced a record-breaking uptick in sales, leading to the most money ever allocated to the Legislative Lottery Scholarship in its 20 year history.
According to a press release, increases in Scratcher and Powerball sales went a long way towards giving the scholarship a much-needed lift. $46.3 million (out of $154.4 million in total revenues) will be allocated to the scholarship this year, up from $41.1 million last year.
The previous high for funds allocated to the scholarship was in 2013, when $43.7 million was set aside for New Mexico students.
Below is a breakdown of lottery sales over the past five years, and the subsequent amounts provided for the scholarship.
| Year | Total Lottery Revenues | Funds Allocated To Lottery Scholarship |
Percent change In Funds Allocated To Scholarship |
| FY 12 | $133.9 Million | $41.3 Million | 0.0% ($41.3 Million in FY 11) |
| FY 13 | $141.8 Million | $43.7 Million | 5.4% |
| FY 14 | $136.1 Million | $40.9 Million | -6.8% |
| FY 15 | $137.1 Million | $41.1 Million | 0.5% |
| FY 16 | $154.4 Million | $46.3 Million | 11.2% |
Associated Students of UNM makes it essentially a yearly priority to work with state legislators on ways to keep the scholarship afloat and supporting as many students as it can. ASUNM President Kyle Biederwolf said the numbers for last year are a step in the right direction.
"We will continue to work with the UNM administration and state lawmakers to ensure this scholarship continues to allow thousands of New Mexico students to access higher education," he said.
This is a developing story. Check back with the Daily Lobo for more.
