N.C. Lottery increases prize percentage

Sep 26, 2010, 11:12 am (4 comments)

North Carolina Lottery

Critics decry smaller education 'slice of pie'

RALEIGH, N.C. — Like or loathe the state lottery, there's no question the total amount it generates for education keeps growing. One thing that isn't growing, however, is the percentage that goes to schools. The funding formula keeps changing.

Since its inception, state lawmakers and lottery leaders tweaked the funding formula in an effort to increase ticket sales.

A new report from the nonprofit watchdog group North Carolina Policy Watch shows just how much it's changed.

When it started, the lottery paid 35 cents of every dollar sold to education. Now, it's down to 29 cents, says Sara Ovaska with N.C. Policy Watch.

"The actual size of the piece of pie that education is getting is smaller," Ovaska said. "So, how small is it going to get?"

"Whether it's 29 percent or 35 percent or 45 percent, the point for me is that bottom-line dollar, so we've seen more revenue going to schools," Gov. Bev Perdue said.

Perdue defends the move to put more money in prizes to generate more lottery sales. She also defends moving lottery money out of school construction to save teacher jobs.

The governor says she opposes supplanting school funds with lottery, yet WRAL News tracked the General Fund education allotment from the time the lottery passed.

The games failed to stop a trend going on for years. Overall spending slowly increased, but the actual public school percentage of the General Fund continued to drop off.

Perdue said that without lottery money for education — about $419 million this year — the state would be in a much worse budget situation than it already is.

Thanks to jbarn884 for the tip.

WRAL

Comments

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

Don't these idiot whiners like the North Carolina Policy Watch drive you insane? The ones who just don't get it and never will? The ones who can't understand that in many instances less is more?

It's the perfect parallel with the tax situation.

Though they're getting a smaller piece of the lottery pie percentage-wise, they're getting more money for education.

It's the same with taxes and President Reagan proved it. If you lower taxes, you get more tax revenue. 

But even though education is getting more money because of taking a lower percentage, they're still whining!  They still want a bigger percentage even though it's proven they'll get less money!

I wonder what part of the word counterproductive these people don't understand?

Or is this a political ploy in an election year so one side can say the other side "cut the percentage of lottery income going to education?"

 

Pogo's avatarPogo

Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on Sep 26, 2010

Don't these idiot whiners like the North Carolina Policy Watch drive you insane? The ones who just don't get it and never will? The ones who can't understand that in many instances less is more?

It's the perfect parallel with the tax situation.

Though they're getting a smaller piece of the lottery pie percentage-wise, they're getting more money for education.

It's the same with taxes and President Reagan proved it. If you lower taxes, you get more tax revenue. 

But even though education is getting more money because of taking a lower percentage, they're still whining!  They still want a bigger percentage even though it's proven they'll get less money!

I wonder what part of the word counterproductive these people don't understand?

Or is this a political ploy in an election year so one side can say the other side "cut the percentage of lottery income going to education?"

 

I Agree! I Agree! I Agree!

If you have 35% for education generating $30 million & it's changed to 30% towards education generating $42 million - what's the problem? Besides the more I win the more I'm going to play & keep playing as of a month ago I had just about quit! You, re right about the taxes, too. If you go from taxing me 30% to 40% I now have less money to spend, in turn generating less sales tax, in turn generating less money for the employers to hire more employees, in turn producing less taxable paychecks, etc. on through the contiguous chain of the trickle tax economic world we live in called capitalism... - 'Nuff Here, Pogo Smash

konane's avatarkonane

I Agree!  with Rdgrnr and Pogo both.  When players have the potential to receive more they play more, creating more revenue.  Simple economics, maybe too simple, too obvious for career bureaucrats to understand.

dpoly1's avatardpoly1

Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on Sep 26, 2010

Don't these idiot whiners like the North Carolina Policy Watch drive you insane? The ones who just don't get it and never will? The ones who can't understand that in many instances less is more?

It's the perfect parallel with the tax situation.

Though they're getting a smaller piece of the lottery pie percentage-wise, they're getting more money for education.

It's the same with taxes and President Reagan proved it. If you lower taxes, you get more tax revenue. 

But even though education is getting more money because of taking a lower percentage, they're still whining!  They still want a bigger percentage even though it's proven they'll get less money!

I wonder what part of the word counterproductive these people don't understand?

Or is this a political ploy in an election year so one side can say the other side "cut the percentage of lottery income going to education?"

 

I Agree!  Our friend rdgrnr understands the way Real Economics works!

It is time for the whiners to crawl back to their caves! Let the Adults handle these things!

End of comments
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