Perhaps you’ve seen the commercials on television. The camera pans over a very diverse group of students, and every one of them is smiling. The voiceover talks about how the children of our state are the future. Finally, the omnipresent voice alerts viewers to the fact that the Oklahoma lottery has contributed $236 million to the Oklahoma Education Lottery Trust Fund since its inception. That’s a lot of money, but it’s a misleading claim.
Lawmakers crossed the line with the ultimate ploy that the governor and other politicians utilized: that proceeds from the lottery, an estimated $300 million a year, would go to support education in Oklahoma. Oklahomans were duped into voting for this legislation because it promised to pump a large amount of money into our education system. Lottery supporters in state government promised in 2002 and 2003 that if the lottery was approved, the education system in Oklahoma would enjoy an additional $300 million a year from revenues. No wonder the lottery passed by such a large margin.
We now know that those estimates were beyond inflated. According to the Oklahoma Lottery Commission, a grand total of an additional $236 million have been pumped into Oklahoma education funding, but the number falls exceedingly short of projections.
It has failed to deliver on the promise of $300 million per year because, as the commercials themselves declare, $236 million has been added for education. In an email exchange with the director of the Oklahoma Lottery Commission, Rollo Redburn, questions regarding promises of Lottery revenues were ignored. Mr. Redburn declared, “regardless of the promises made, the fact remains that $236 million have gone to education that otherwise would not have.”
This is a tired line that surreptitiously avoids the real issue: why has the lottery failed to deliver on its promise of $300 million a year?
You might argue Americans are used to broken promises, and that this campaign rhetoric was no different. However, this time it feels much more personal. This wasn’t the act of players on some national stage or words from an anonymous speechwriter – this was a deliberate ploy by state politicians to mislead the very people they are charged to serve. The people of Oklahoma were, no doubt, fooled by the promises of easy money and a large supplement to state education funding.
According to the approved legislation, 35 percent of lottery revenues must be deposited quarterly into an education fund, while 45 percent of the revenues go to sustain the payouts. The final 20 percent is largely unaccounted – roughly $20 million in fiscal year 2005 – but is probably “required” for administrative purposes.
In fiscal year 2005, just more than $65 million were added for Oklahoma education, well short of a $300 million projection. The estimates of $300 million a year were pure politics, an inflated imaginary number concocted to fool voters. The latest figures from the Oklahoma Lottery Commission report total revenues of just less than $205 million – and only 35 percent of that will go towards education.
A major flaw in the Lottery legislation is that it was meant to act as a supplement and not a replacement – but a national study by Homer Erekson, dean of the business school at the University of Missouri Kansas City, shows of the 42 states with legalized gambling, funds that were earmarked for education have gone on to replace dollars that originally came from the general fund. His report claims education doesn’t really benefit, and more than likely suffers decreased funding due to a lottery. Oklahoma has a law that says lottery funds cannot be diverted away from education, but it hasn’t been enforced as stringently as most Oklahomans would like.
According to the numbers, the average Oklahoman over the age of 18 spends $76 a year playing the lottery. Of course, the numbers are skewed a bit, because there are many Oklahomans that have never played the Lottery, yours truly included. I don’t understand why people bother playing the Lottery – I think you’d have more fun simply setting a pile of cash on fire.
It remains that barely 79 percent of the money promised annually has been earmarked for education over the life of the lottery. Lottery officials claim they can deliver more funds to the state if revenue restrictions are lifted.
They claim while Oklahoma education may get a smaller percentage of total revenues, they will get a larger total dollar amount if these restrictions are overturned. They claim this will allow them to offer larger payouts and prizes, which will entice more people to play. This has been shown to work in a few states, but is far from guaranteed. The Lottery faces a major problem: how to convince a dwindling number of people to throw their money away in spite of increasingly overwhelming odds.
Certainly, promises of $300 million a year were unfounded. A total of $236 million is a lot of money, but far less than the roughly $1.1 billion we should have at this point. If this were a corporation, and revenues fell short of projections by 78 percent, heads would roll.
At the very least, those in charge would be fired or forced to resign, an audit would be ordered and the board of trustees would demand full accountability. But since this is the result of projections made by a government entity there is no uproar. There is no demand for accountability, and no one is going to be fired. It is business as usual, and that is pathetic.
I don’t think it is unreasonable for the Oklahoma Lottery Commission to apologize for inflating estimates and lying to Oklahomans.
Instead of airing commercials that tout the success of the lottery and spin information to cover the massive mistake, a 30-second commercial starring Henry and the folks at the lottery commission would go a long way in making amends for this blunder. Lying about lottery revenues sets a bad example for our children – and as politicians unceasingly remind us – children are our future.
-Joe Hunt is an economics and history senior.
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roddack 3 years, 3 months ago
But its for the children
dave_shrugged 3 years, 3 months ago
An apology from a politician?
Best line ever from the movie The Hunt for Red October "Jack, I am a politician, which means I am a thief and a liar - when I am not kissing babies I am stealing their lollypops".
Gov. Henry did exactly what he said he would when he ran for office - he put having a lottery on the ballot for a vote of the people. Something that had been unable to happen up until that point.
Apology from a politician......LAWLS.....