Maryland budget deficit looms as lottery revenue falls off

Comment #16

rdc137 — Sat, 02 Dec 2006 04:39:43 GMT

Regarding the lawyer comment, some states have made it clear that you do not have to provide health insurance to smokers (Michigan comes to mind). Others say that you do not have to pay the difference between the smoker and non-smoker rate.

Regarding the lottery: That's exactly what Maryland wants. The rich pay the high taxes. The poor, who would otherwise not pay much of anything, are forking over their money for a lottery that is essentially a sponge for the state. Perhaps the profits dropp... [ More ]

Comment #15

TheGameGrl — Sat, 02 Dec 2006 01:50:32 GMT

Gosh a lawyer for employee rights is salivating on that comment! Lest we forgot to not hire a drinker or a former addict. That would leave half the politicians without a job right now. (*grin)

Now onto the real original issue. Maryland does need to revamp its lottery advertising and promotions. The sheer fact that Most of the players are of lower income should be a wake up call for Maryland! They are low income BECAUSE of the bureacracy (sp?) of the business's that have remained. Low pay mean... [ More ]

Comment #14

rdc137 — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 15:38:38 GMT

Thanks for the good laugh!

If you don't want to pay for benefits for smokers, DON'T HIRE THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE

Comment #13

LOTTOMIKE — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 13:12:11 GMT

Fired for Smoking Off the Job, Man Sues

By Scott Malone, Reuters

BOSTON (Nov. 30) - A Massachusetts man fired for smoking while off duty has sued his former company, saying its policy of not employing smokers serves no business purpose and that a urine test for nicotine violates privacy rights, his lawyer said Thursday.

Scott Rodrigues was fired by Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. after a mandatory urine test showed evidence of nicotine in his system, lawyer Harvey Schwartz said. The law... [ More ]

Comment #12

LOTTOMIKE — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 07:54:16 GMT

i was pointing out the political correctness part....HOWEVER

you'd be surprised to know that i HATE smoking.i quit six years ago this christmas.i smoked three packs a day.i have a mother who is killing herself lighting one after another.she has been smoking for nearly 40 years.i'm begging her to stop.the doctors have warned her over and over.to no avail.she'll quit because she wants to see her grandkids grow up but after a few weeks the urge gets to strong.so i say to her you can't smoke a ci... [ More ]

Comment #11

rdc137 — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 06:58:34 GMT

Put aside the argument about smoker's rights vs. public health....

If you are smoking around a bunch of non-smokers it's just plain rude!

NJ is considering a ban on smoking while driving (I'm serious). I would only agree to that when children are in the car. I am sickened by the thoughts of mothers smoking around their children. Worry about your kids more than your smokes for crying out loud!

Delaware was among the first states to ban smoking. Most claimed it would kill the restaurants.... [ More ]

Comment #10

LOTTOMIKE — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 06:46:10 GMT

all this politically correctness is hurting more than helping in my opinion.and you are right.why ban cigarette smoke when there is other stuff a lot worse than that your breathing at the stadium.can't even smoke in a bar in a lot of places.its silly.thats what a bar is for is to smoke and drink.if you would've told somebody twenty years ago smoking in bars would be illegal they would've laughed.i do think there will come a day where cigarettes are outlawed even in cars.could you imagine feeling... [ More ]

Comment #9

four4me — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 06:33:45 GMT

there also going to raise the cigarette tax another buck. what kills me about this is tobacco made this country what it is today. we have grown and sold tobacco since the first settlers came to this country. of course i know tobacco is bad for you but if they want to do something about it then pull it off the shelves. before long there will be no place for smokers to smoke here as they are being driven away from every establishment.

yet i can go to the ball park and breathe creosote smoke fr... [ More ]

Comment #8

rdc137 — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 05:53:07 GMT

Not only that, but Maryland has to compete with more business-friendly states as Virginia and especially Delaware. I have had dealings with the MD tax department in the past. When I talked to one of the higher-ups, they acted as if they have a devine right to tax Delaware. In fact, Maryland has a law that any Delaware company employing Maryland residents is required to withhold Maryland taxes. Of course, this is unenforceable for any company not doing business in Maryland, but they still try to

Comment #7

four4me — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 05:26:02 GMT

Maryland doesn't need powerball we are surrounded by powerball states if anything people come to Maryland to play mega. hot lotto is one of the hardest games to hit.

Marylander income deficits is not the lotteries fault it the leaders of our state fault for not generating any large income based enterprise. Every time some big corporation threatens to leave when they go to the bargaining table the leaders of our state wouldn't bend and inch so the large companies pack up and roll out. Not to... [ More ]

Comment #6

four4me — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 05:10:58 GMT

if you have excel go the the winning numbers page and click the link

Download The Historical Winning Numbers In Microsoft Excel Format

you should get the whole history..... sometimes it's not completly up to date but you can fill in any information by copying and pasting.

Comment #5

LckyLary — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 03:34:35 GMT

I was in MD last weekend but I didn't play much there, just a Bonus Match 5. On 3 lines I had no matches. I think the reason is I have no system because their website is extremely difficult to translate into raw data. I downloaded the pages and then when I tried to retrieve them they came up blank. The #s are bunched-up and out of order on the site and you have to go to every month separately. Most other sites give past draw history in a tidy downloadable format. When I don't have the data, I do... [ More ]

Comment #4

rdc137 — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 15:38:17 GMT

But it is computerized, and the drawings are not broadcast, a double whammy. It is a bad game.

Comment #3

CASH Only — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 15:32:06 GMT

Maryland is one of the six original BG states.

HL added Kansas this year, and New Mexico this month. HL will be around a while longer, especially if the matrixes are changed. Plus HL currently has a record jackpot.

Comment #2

rdc137 — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 15:16:24 GMT

Doubtful. If I recall, Maryland was among the first Big Game states. If anything, they should add Powerball to the line up, in addition to Mega Millions. Hot Lotto probably won't last much longer in the MUSL's line up.

Comment #1

CASH Only — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 14:55:59 GMT

In another forum I suggested Maryland, which has a low population among the Mega Millions states, consider switching from MM to Powerball/MUSL. The reason is that Maryland would then be eligible to offer Hot Lotto, which has higher jackpot potential than a Maryland-only game, especially if HL were to change its matrixes.

Maryland budget deficit looms as lottery revenue falls off

Lottery Post — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 13:21:00 GMT

Maryland's lottery has been slowing down as a revenue source for years and will continue to underperform as residents seek other gambling ventures, including betting on slot machines in neighboring states, budget analysts and state officials say.

The lottery has been, until very recently, the third-largest general fund revenues source, said David Roose, director of the state's Bureau of Revenue Estimates. But in the last few years the corporate income tax has become the third-largest.... [ More ]