The Alabama Jobs Foundation (AJF), a group of businessmen working for passage of bill to allow lottery and casino gaming in the state, have presented data showing that Alabamians want an opportunity to vote on potential lottery and casino expansion.

The poll, which was released on Monday found that: 89% of state voters want a vote on gambling; 80% support a lottery for education; 69% support a gambling/lottery constitutional amendment. 77% support a gambling compact between the state and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians and 66% oppose new taxes to solve the state’s current budget crisis.

Gambling expansion has been a hot topic in Alabama for years. State Sen. Del Marsh has introduced a bill that will pave the way to legalize gambling at four sites across the state and create a lottery that will generate $400 million for the state’s coffers, 11,000 new jobs and an economic impact of almost $1.3 billion.

Now, with the ever growing budget crisis, gambling has even become a bigger issue with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians joining the debate, by offering the state $250 million to bail out the budget shortfall in exchange to exclusive rights for casino gaming.