Proposal to ban welfare recipients from playing lottery

No, they're not telling them how they can spend their money.

They're telling them how they can spend the taxpayers' money.

And rightfully so.

I can't see how this is enforceable, since there's no way to tell if someone is on welfare or not unless they admit to it. I think it's just an elected official trying to score points with his constituents, regardless of if what he is going to do will be effective or make a difference.

Back in the 90s, I worked in a welfare office interviewing people trying to get benefits and I could tell some stories. Another law I remember being passed was we had to collect information on the absent parent(s) of the children in the household, and the state would go after them for child support to pay back welfare. That was a very popular law I'm sure but in reality, it made little difference. The office that handled this rarely ever had a problem finding absent parents, but many of them were either not working or working low wage jobs, on disability, or in jail. Because of all of the things mentioned, the state either couldn't collect anything or if they did, it was usually a low amount of money. I used to see child support orders for $10/week, or in one case, I saw $35/month. Usually they got a drop in the bucket if anything. 

I consider this proposal to something similar, it will be popular with voters, but will make no difference.

Has this state given it much thought that people on welfare & foodstamps are hoping to hit it big time so that they can sever the cord that gives them these benefits, in other words, we want off welfare.  They want to uplift themselves by taking a shot at the lottery.  Who is the state to say " if you on foodstamps  you not allowed to dream big,  that privlege belongs others, others who are not on welfare!"

You're allowed to dream as big as you want but not with money we give you for food.

If you receive too much, give it back, it's for food, not gambling.

If you really want to dream big, get a job and dream big with your own money, not ours.

Rep=Paul Skip Stam R-For Wake"To me u and the reps have enough problems u make to much money now for doing nothing.it seems as if u don't have anything to do.but u do have time to worry about the lottery.well for me and my thoughs u should worry about u and your family.these people have just as much rights to play lotto as your and your rich a__s do.they may get lucky and hit so they can get off welfare and live a happy stupid life like you do.you do what u do best just sit on your butt and keep getting fat.oh u have a lot to learn about welfare floks they do like your cheap food stamps.

this will never happen.  Not even in a milion years...the state that give  money to yhe people in meed of welfare. Those same exact people. Well at least som will  turn around and gives it right back to the state. By playing. lottery      do u think this law will actually pass......   I think not...   To much money will be at stake. It will never happen.

Si.  But they will simply take the money that they have (let's just put it that way) and put it in South Carolina, Virginia, or Tennessee's lottery fund, thus screwing over North Carolina.  The lottery's purpose is to fund education.  North Carolina will be livid if South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee is getting North Carolina's residents' money so they can either be entertained, chase a 1 in 176 million dream, or both.

After reading the post, I said this is the most assinine thought process by any poitician that I've read about in four years.

Are they living on another planet. I would think it's big time discrimination. Just because the state administers welfare to recipients doesn't

mean that it owns them.

Even if there is something done towards this action, The poiliticians need to go out and police their own cluster instead of having the clerk be responsible for it, when the politicians weren't to begin with..

Whatever these politicians are being paid, it's way to much and they need to giveback or otherwise get a life....!

Brought to you by the same people that want to put rape victims in jail..

I would hope so, in the case of when one is granted a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy!!!  In this case, the citizen's submitted/listed debts are discharged -- not 1 penny was spent by the government to pay back any creditors OR to give the bankruptcy recipient any future living money, housing money, medical/dental aid, employment aid, or food stamps -- the bankruptcy recipient paid for their bankruptcy status request to be CONSIDERED by the multiple county judicial employees though!

NC is gone crazy, just like they bann sweepstakes and things..why in the hell do NC think they can tell somebody how to spend their money. this is crazy to even think about it

Once anybody get a check or cash in they name no matter how they got it, its their money. If i work all week or get a ssi check, aint no way in hell it still the boss or the government money once its giving to me.

to the poster who mentioned discrimination. Your right!

To the poster who mentioned that welfare folks not use there welfare money for gaming....beats using it to buy moonshine from the folks... Technically its plausible and conceivable for a person on welfare to have "cash". A person is allowed to make meager income and still receive reciprical funds thru the state to make ends meet. 

Maybe they are selling aluminum cans and getting money that way. Our babysitting a child on weekends. We cannot "assume" they are entirely without small ways of making ends meet.

As to govt telling a "citizen" its not okay for you if we "fund" your home, then we need to tell the politicians its NOT okay to fund their houses, their personal vacations, their staff treats...ad nausem :) Bottom line is, if a foreigner can stop thru in america, buy a ticket and claim a win, then we have no right to tell a natural citizen that there rights are less...fair is fair.

after reading alot of these responses to,its a shame that all these people choose to judge and look down on people thats a lil less fortunate. same reason why America is in the jam its in. We all can judge the next person but wont throw them a bone to help make things better, everybody that gets money from the government is not doing it cause they want to im sure...sad world we living in

You assuming Ridge that these people are using money that they received " from the State" to play the game. That cannot be true in all cases. What if these folk decided to stand at street corners or outside a local store and panhandle a few extra bucks to play the lottery? One could hardly be suggesting that EVERY dollar in a welfare's pocket is from the State.Dreaming is Free- it is & can be done without State money. l have read of people wanting to buy alcohol with food stamps and some have gotten away with in the past, but not anymore and rightly so.

 There is no definitive way of knowing for certain whether the money these welfare recipients would be using is welfare crown.. no way, unless they using stamps to buy food and say " give me lottery tickets with the change".