Why State Lotteries Never Live Up To Their Promises

[xchrom]

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/02/25/3326421/state-lottery-education/



Alabama doesn’t have a lottery, but that could soon change, as three gubernatorial candidates are running on the promise to create one to pay for college scholarships. Tennessee is also considering setting up a scholarship program with lottery profits.

States have often created lotteries with the promise that the money from tickets will get used for public benefits, usually education. But as many have found out, that promise is usually elusive.

When New Mexico set up its lottery in 1995, it passed legislation that sent 40 percent of the profits to college scholarships and 60 percent to public schools for construction and equipment. The scholarship program was meant to pay high school graduates’ tuition at a state school if they enrolled full time and maintained their grades. But just a few years later, the demand for the scholarships outstripped the profits from the lottery, the Albuquerque Journal reports. So in 2001, it passed new legislation to designate all of the lottery profits to the scholarships, diverting the money meant for public schools.

And yet even with all of the money going to scholarships, demand has been exceeding lottery profits since 2009. The state’s department of higher education has covered the shortfall with money saved from past years, but it now says without a cash infusion, it will have to reduce tuition payments for the semester. Gov. Susana Martinez (R) has requested $16 million from the general fund to make sure students get full payments. But state lawmakers have yet to come up with a long-term solution, although the Legislative Finance Committee has proposed capping scholarships, increasing the required grade-point average, and requiring students to take more credits.

[Egalitarian Thug]

1. More scams for the sheeple. Don't demand a fair day's pay for a fair day's work,

buy a lottery ticket and dream of the day that you too can get into the country club with your golden ticket to happiness.

[DetlefK]

2. You ever wondered why rich people don't invest in lottery-tickets?

Maybe because they do the math and realize that it's projected to result in a net loss?

[Travis_0004]

3. Couldn't the same arguemnt be made for beer and ciggerettes?

Poorer people are more likely to abuse alcohol and tobacco, but we are not calling for a ban on those.

I'll admit, that I spent more on lottery tickets than I usually do (like 20.00 for the year, compared to 0-5 dollars.), but I don't have a problem with lotteries. They bring in tax revenue, and I tend to think people should be free to make decision for themselves, even if they are dumb decisions.

Its kind of how I feel about pot. I think its a waste of money, but if it makes you happy, have at it.

[Egalitarian Thug]

5. It's not tax money, that's a large part of the point.

It is inadequately funding an essential service through the most regressive financial scheme available today.

It is the slow degradation of the very foundations of society and transfer of public money into private pockets.

[B Calm]

4. I had a coworker who swore he was way ahead on playing

the lottery. He thought I was a smart ass when I told him he should quit his job and play lotteries full time, lol. .

[DetlefK]

7. I know someone who had a trick as well:

His trick was to pick numbers that hadn't been drawn in a long time.
1. What he didn't take into account was that each lottery drawing is independent from previous ones.
2. Even if they are somehow dependent, the regression to average only works when the number of drawings reaches infinity.

[kelliekat44]

6. I can only speak for the one lottery that used to do what it promised and that is the PA lottery.

I haven't lived in Pennsylvania for a while now, but I grew up there and when the lottery came into existence it did marvelous things for the seniors, housing subsidies (really great ones based on income. My elderly aunt paid $26.00 per month for an efficiency), free public transportation from 10-3 for seniors, food subsidies, and rebate checks every year (mother received about 240.00). Medical subsidies etc. I believe that some of the money went for schools too. I don't know what has happened over the past 10-20 years.

[MrScorpio]

8. Lotteries in this country simply don't pay out

When I played the lotto in Germany, I easily recouped my wagers or more about half the time. This happened consistently.

Here, the games are rigged for people to either lose or receive pittances.

It is all a scam in this country.