Officials have been working hard to get everything in place for the newest state lottery in the country ever since a bill was passed in August 2018. One year on, the platform has almost been set up and the Mississippi Lottery is set to launch on December 1st.
That means that approved retailers should have the first scratch-offs in-store and available to sell by the start of December. These games will primarily be sold in convenience stores, gas stations, supermarkets, grocery stores and tobacco/beer stores, as well as licensed casinos.
Speaking about the level of interest there has been already, Tom Shaheen, the president of the MLC, said: “Over the last month, we have received a large number of calls from retailer operators around the state who are enthusiastic about coming on board to sell lottery tickets. As the number of applications come in, our team will be working in overdrive to receive, process and validate the information.”
What To Do To Apply
To apply to become a lottery retailer, you need to visit mslotteryhome.com and select the ‘Procurements & Personnel’ tab. You can then access the ‘Retailer Application Packet’ and start to work through the various forms.
You will be required to provide all the necessary information about the location of your store, including the name, address, store telephone number and opening hours. You must also complete similar details relating to your business, the owners and anyone who else who has an interest in the business, such as partners, proprietors or corporate officers.
You must agree to the terms outlined by the MLC and pay a non-refundable application fee of $80, along with an extra $15 for each additional location. You must mail your application to the MLC’s office for the attention of the Retailer Contracts Department, P.O. Box 321433, Flowood, MS 39232.
Once you have sent off your application, the MLC will verify your bank account information and alert you if any parts of the application are incomplete. They will then conduct a thorough background investigation, including a credit check, taxation check and criminal history check, before assessing the site and then either approving or denying the application.
The application process has a lot of steps and can be quite time-consuming, but there are so many benefits to selling lottery games that Shaahen is not surprised by how much interest there has been so far.
He said: “The prospective retailers are not only coming on board to sell lottery tickets, but they are investing in the opportunity to drive more traffic to their store, increase for other store merchandise, receive support from a dedicated Lottery Sales Representative and ultimately assist Mississippi in raising money to help fund infrastructure and educational needs.”
Powerball and Mega Millions Coming in Early 2020
It was also revealed that the popular multi-state games Powerball and Mega Millions will be available in Mississippi in early 2020. The Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), the organisation responsible for licensing and managing games such as these, approved the sale of tickets for both lotteries in the state.
Documents previously released by the MLC showed that several other games, including other multi-state games such as Cash4Life and Lotto America, would also be available to players in MS some time next year. Added to the state-specific lotteries that are also in the works, that would make Mississippi’s catalogue of games one of the most comprehensive in the US.