Senate Majority Ldr Scofield: I hear from my constituents more than anything else — ‘When are we going to get to vote on a lottery?’

For decades, every legislative session begins with a question about this possibly being the year legislators pass something to initiate a lottery in Alabama. With each passing year, support for a lottery grows.

This year is no different, according to State Senate Majority Leader Clay Scofield (R-Guntersville).

During an appearance on this week’s broadcast of Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal,” Scofield acknowledged hearing from his constituents but added there was uncertainty about where lottery revenues could end up and mentioned rural broadband, rural hospitals, and scholarships as possibilities.

“I think voters, number one, expect to vote on a lottery,” he said. “I hear that more from my constituents than anything else, ‘When are we going to get to vote on a lottery?’ And frankly, my position is this: I can’t ask the people of my district to trust me with their vote if I don’t trust them with theirs. And I do trust the folks that I represent with their vote. But, with that being said, I think people expect to know where the money is going to go. You’ll always hear me say it a lot — the devil is in the details. I think it is important in that we show them where the money is going to go, whether that money goes to rural broadband, rural hospitals or scholarships. I have ideas on the scholarship front. But I think it’s important, and I think voters expect to know where that money is going to.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.