Lottery hits threshold that will fulfill funding obligation to state transportation

The Mississippi Lottery Corporation transfers proceeds from its sales to the state every month, and the February payout brought the year's total to over 84 million. The first 80 million dollars in lottery transfers every year goes into the State Highway Fund which maintains roads and bridges. It is the third year in a row that the threshold has been met in the third quarter of the fiscal year, which will end in June.

Willie Simmons is the commissioner of transportation for the central district of Mississippi. He says many communities have benefited since the lottery was implemented in 2019.

We started paving highways up in Holmes County, a county that had not seen any major pavement work in many, many years." he said. "We have now put more than, more than $10 million dollars in the Holmes County."

Now that the threshold is met, the Education Enhancement Fund will receive the rest of the money transferred by the lottery this fiscal year. Simmons says that transportation officials don't want to compete with education, but they need more to maintain roads and bridges in the state.

"We do need more recurring dollars," he said. "whether it be the lottery or whether it be some other way."

Simmons says his department needs closer to 300 million to fulfill all obligations.