Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner said he plans to increase education funding in Illinois, but many people wonder where that money will come from if taxes are rolled back. There is another source of money for education in Illinois beyond taxes–the state lottery. Not everyone is cool with that.
Some have criticized the program for not covering as much education funding as the organization originally planned. In 2012, the lottery paid about $639 million to the Common School Fund. That’s a lot of money, but not nearly enough to fund education expenses in the state.
Plus, the idea of the government institutionalizing a “vice” in the form of gambling in order to funnel money to educate children has rubbed some people the wrong way, including John Oliver, the host of HBO’s comedy-news program “Last Week Tonight.” Oliver spent a portion of his first season finale show blasting state lotteries, including Illinois’.
He cited lottery commercials in Tennessee, Oregon and New York that almost made the lottery seem like an education charity. The show also pointed out that recent studies show that low-income households spend a higher portion of their income on lottery tickets than other groups.
Oliver lambasts the tone of lottery ads that make it seem like buying lottery tickets is an investment in a family’s future
“The lottery is in the business of selling people hope,”he says. But “[t]hose mega-dreams are mega-unlikely to happen.” There is a one in 176 million chance of winning a lottery jackpot. There are some smaller prizes, but most people will never see a return on the money they put into state gambling. A classic “Someone’s got to win, it might as well be me” attitude is cultivated in these ads. Oliver doesn’t like it.
Oliver’s main beef with the Illinois lottery is that the state knows that gambling is addictive (the Illinois Lottery website has a link for tips on how to play responsibly), yet they still offer channels to enable it. And, Oliver says, when he clicked on the responsible gaming link, he was ambushed by a pop-up ad for the lottery itself.
“Seriously, Illinois? There is a reason that the first step in a 12-step program isn’t ‘Congratulations on starting the program! Why not reward yourself with a refreshing gin and tonic! Cheers!’”
He takes the alcohol-gambling analogy further at the end of the segment:
“Think about it this way: Gambling is a little like alcohol. Most people like it, some are addicted to it and it’s not like the state can or should outlaw it altogether. But it would be a little strange if the state was in the liquor business, advertising it by claiming that every shot of vodka you drink helps schoolchildren learn.”
Oliver is also dumbfounded by the idea that the Illinois Lottery released a mobile phone application that allows Illinoisans to play the lottery and gamble money right from their phones. He calls it “terrifying.”
He criticizes the idea that a lottery run by the state government can support a program that can be addictive and cause average citizens to lose their money with little to no chance of actually winning. Especially when that state government claims the program is doing good things for the state.
Oliver points out that even some lottery winners have a difficult time after winning–they lose all their money, some have died tragically and others face difficult family relationships.
Oliver goes on to explain that state lotteries were illegal in the U.S. until 1964 and that many people got behind them because “education funding” sounded like a good idea. But Oliver argues in favor of other ways to fund education that he thinks makes more sense, such as sales tax. Or:
“Simply putting cash into an envelope, writing school on the front of it and mailing it.”
There are 24 states that set aside lottery money for education funding, but 21 of those states have flat or declining lottery education funding, including Illinois. Oliver explains that even if lawmakers had originally intended lotteries to fund schools exclusively, it’s difficult to earmark state money for only one purpose. In some states, even though lottery money was funneled toward education, other money that normally would have gone to education was now headed elsewhere.
“But I’m sure that Illinois will make the same arguments that everyone does to justify state-sponsored gambling. ‘Hey, it brings in money for good causes.’ Except, as I think we’ve seen by now, lotteries are bad for losers, often bad for winners and are a pretty compromising way to assist state budgets.”
Nationwide, 2013 lottery sales topped $68 billion. Illinois lottery started in July 1974. Beyond the money sent toward state education funding, the lottery website says: “All told, through fiscal 2012, the Lottery has contributed $17.5 billion to good causes.”
The Illinois Lottery is run by the Lottery Control Board, led by Michael J. Jones. It fell under the Department of Revenue until 2011, when it became an independent cabinet entity and is governed by the Illinois Lottery Law. It has an annual budget of $30 billion and employs 152 people.
NEXT ARTICLE: Take our poll: Will you use the new state lottery app?
[RECOMMENDED]
- New map shows that CPS students made more progress than charter school students
- Helpful apps for Illinoisans
- Simon Institute poll finds Illinois still want 2011 income tax increase to go away
- That’s right, the Simpsons live in Illinois. Here are 20 reasons why
Caitlin Wilson is a staff writer for Reboot Illinois. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago, where she studied journalism and political science. Caitlin has become both endeared to and frustrated with her adopted home state and wants to bring Illinoisans the information they need to actively participate in the politics that directly affect them. You can find Reboot on Facebook here and on Twitter at @rebootillinois.