Voters in Arkansas could soon have the opportunity to decide on a statewide lottery. The Attorney General has already approved the ballot language. Groups are now gathering signatures to get the measure in front of voters next year.

Every state bordering Arkansas--except Mississippi--has a lottery. Tennessee's is nearly four-years-old and has provided millions of dollars in scholarships and other educational programs.

It's the thrill of a chance at big bucks to become an instant millionaire, and all you have to do is buy a ticket.

Rebecca Hargrove knows a thing or to about lotteries. She's organized Florida's, Georgia's, and now Tennessee.

The Tennessee education lottery has only been in existence since January 2004, and as of October 2007 the money raised is astounding.

(Rebeeca Hargrove, President/CEO Tennessee Lottery) "So just over three and a half years, we crossed the $1 billion mark in revenue raised for education."

The Tennessee state legislature approved the money only for education. That includes scholarships, pre-kindergarten programs and after-school programs.

(Hargrove) "If you can keep the best and the brightest students in the state, that has long term economic benefit "

Sixty-eight thousand students are in college alone on Hope scholarships, funded entirely by the lottery. O'Keefe Hassell knows firsthand how valuable the Hope scholarships are. His tuition at a private college in Jackson is paid for.

(O’Keefe Hassell, Scholarship Recipient) "Many people are receiving educational opportunities they wouldn't receive otherwise if the financial means weren't there. And I can say from personal experience it made a difference in my life."

Tuition at Lane College is touted as one of the least expensive in the mid-south because out-of-state fees aren't assessed. Tuition per year is $13,400 compared to some Arkansas private school tuitions. Harding is just under $18,000, Ouachita Baptist at nearly $24,000 and Hendrix at nearly $30,000.

Hassell now works for the Tennessee State Lottery. Although legally he can't play, for him the payoff has unlocked endless possibilities.

(Hassell) "There's nothing greater than having a degree and knowing everything is taken care of…and that's one of the great things about the Tennessee state lottery, they actually give people who otherwise wouldn't have had the chance a quality education they give them the financial means and the encouragement to pursue that."

The percentage of lottery ticket money in Tennessee breaks down like this--on average, 55% of ticket sales goes to prizes, while 28% of the money goes to scholarships and pre-k programs. About 6.5% goes to retailers who sell the lottery tickets, per the legislation. And the remaining 6% to 7% is spent on operating costs.

(Rich Huddleston, Arkansas advocates for Children & Families) "A lottery tax is not the only way to fund a program. We've gotten along for decades without a lottery, so why all of a sudden do we need it now?"

Locally, groups are already speaking out against an Arkansas lottery. Rich Huddleston with Arkansas Advocates for Children and Family believes a state lottery is not in the best interest for Arkansas families.

(Huddleston) "It's our view that if you want to raise revenue to help families, do you want to do it in such away that its going to hurt them economically? Which is what a lottery tax would do for a lot of our lower to middle income families."

Huddleston says research shows after the first few years lottery revenue declines, leaving states to look to other ways to promote their games.

(Hudddleston) "Were confident that once we get the word out about all the negative consequences about the lottery, how it's not a reliable revenue source and how it's really going to hurt the lower/middle income families, we're confident that the average voter will decide we can do better than this."

Other groups opposing an Arkansas lottery besides Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families include Family Council of Arkansas and Arkansas Faith and Ethics Council.

Meanwhile, the Lieutenant Governor estimates if the lottery were to pass, it would generate $100 million within the first year in scholarship money.

It will take more than 78,000 signatures to get the lottery on the ballot for next November.