Lottery news from http://www.registerguard.com/
A graph of the Oregon Lottery's performance over the last 21 years looks like the chart of a hot stock: It started at close to zero, and has now entered 10-digit territory. The lottery generated a record $1.09 billion in sales during the 2006 fiscal year, producing a $484 million profit for the state government. This success, however, comes at a price.
The most obvious price is the one paid by lottery players. The $1.09 billion figure works out to $311 for every man, woman and child in Oregon. Some of that is paid back in prizes; the sales number is a hybrid of net sales for video poker and slot machines, and gross sales for the lottery's 10 other games. The state's $484 million take works out to $138 per capita, but that doesn't include expenses and vendor commissions.
Whatever the figure, it's a far cry from what it was when the lottery began in 1985. Then, the lottery generated $33 million in sales - $12 per capita, of which more than half was returned as prizes. Gross per-capita spending on state-sponsored gambling games has expanded by a factor of 26. In evaluating the per-capita figures, it must be borne in mind that minors aren't allowed to play the lottery and half of adults choose not to. The statistics should not mask the fact that in the real world, many gamblers are spending thousands of dollars a year on the lottery.
Less obvious is the social price that is exacted by a highly successful gambling enterprise. Each dollar spent on the lottery is a dollar that isn't spent on something else. For most people, this is an inconsequential financial diversion that can be categorized as an entertainment expense. For a few, however, gambling is a problem, even an addiction - and the lottery, however, has made opportunities for gambling ubiquitous. Behind the lottery's record sales are many hidden stories of financial desperation, often leading to personal or family crises.
Perhaps most subtle of all is the price paid by a state and its people when they embrace gambling as a means of public finance. The lottery has the superficial appeal of a voluntary tax that is paid only by those who choose to play. Yet the state does not merely offer lottery games - it promotes them, and in the process promotes luck over work and dreams over reality. To fuel continued sales, the promotion must become ever more enticing, with bigger prizes and fresh games. The growth of the lottery traces the state's development as an ever-more-energetic enabler of gambling in general, and problem gamblers in particular.
The state's take from the lottery will be put to good use - so good that the lottery has become an indispensable component of the state budget. The $1 billion-plus sales figure, however, should lead Oregonians to ask some questions: How big can the Oregon Lottery get? Are any types of gambling games off-limits? Where will Oregonians draw the line when it comes to pumping up sales? When will the price of that next dollar in sales become a price Oregonians are unwilling to pay?
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