This bill includes a couple of good points from the view of the politicians:
1) It lets them strike a blow against the mythical lifetime welfare parasites (since the Welfare Reform Act in 1996, welfare benefits are limited to no more than 5 years over a person's lifetime) and tell the voters how tough they are being on those wastrels.
2) It lets them cater to conservative religious elements (and there are a lot of those in Tennessee) by saying they are striking a blow against gambling.
Of course, it will cost the state money, since it will reduce lottery income. But for many extremely anti-government politicians, that's a good thing too!
I'm not too sympathetic to the measure, but I have to admit that it does have a good point....I'm sure many people on assistance play the lottery with the idea that they will win big and strike it rich....So there's no need to do anything difficult or uncomfortable to improve their lot in life in a more traditional way.
I haven't been on government assistance since getting unemployment payments for a few months in the 1980s, plus I don't live in Tennessee. Based on what I've read here, I doubt I'd play the Tennessee lottery even while passing through the state, so the bill really doesn't affect me much, whether it passes or not.