Maximizing State Lottery Dollars for Public Education: An Analysis of Current State Lottery Models

National Office for Research on Measurement and Evaluation Systems. University of Arkansas, 346 North West Avenue, 302 WAAX, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Tel: 479-575-5593; Fax: 479-575-5185; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://normes.uark.edu/erps/resources.html

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18

Educational Finance; Public Education; Elementary Secondary Education; Public Support; State Aid; State Programs; Income; Resource Allocation; Efficiency; Economic Impact

District of Columbia; United States

1934-6875

Today, it is increasingly difficult for states to adequately satisfy the demand for well-funded and quality public services, such as K-12 education by relying exclusively on traditional, broad-based taxes for fiscal support. State sponsored lotteries are an increasingly popular, non-traditional revenue stream for public education. There is in many cases, however, a gap between their promoted benefit to public K-12 schools and the actual fiscal support they provide. This article examines the efficiency of 42 U.S. state lotteries and the District of Columbia in transferring funds to public education programs. Historical and geographic trends are identified that have influenced the design of state lottery revenue allocation policies. (Contains 3 tables and 21 endnotes.)

As Provided

24

2008

EJ809436