NC Senate Passes Lottery
This afternoon, the North Carolina Senate approved the creation of a state lottery. The measure was passed by the House earlier this year and is expected to be signed quickly by Gov. Mike Easley. Easley, a Democrat, has made the creation of an education lottery his signature issue.
The lottery has divided North Carolina since the early 1980s. Proponents claim that the profits would benefit the educational system, while a coalition of progressives and conservatives has successfully opposed the measure for years. Progressives argue that the lottery is a regressive way of funding education that will supplant rather than supplement education funding, while conservatives oppose it on moral grounds.
Today's Senate vote was not without controversy. All of the Senate Republicans and five Democrats -- a majority of the chamber's members -- opposed the lottery and prevented it from coming to a floor vote last week right before the supposed end of this year's legislative session. However, the Democratic leadership unexpectedly recalled the body this week and used the absence of two Republicans, including one who is recovering from a hospital stay, to force a tie vote. Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue, a likely Democratic gubernatorial candidate in 2008, then cast the deciding vote in favor of the lottery.
If the lottery becomes law as expected, North Carolina will become the last state on the East Coast to establish a numbers game.
Click here to read The News & Observer's initial coverage of the vote.
posted by John Q. @ 4:20 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Considering GA and SC don't have much to show for their lottery, I hope NC isn't expecting miracles from theirs.
Those who think another program here, or increased appropriations there will solve the problem with education in the south, they're doing the children a major disservice.
Ask anyone who works, teaches, or volunteers in our schools and they'll tell you the biggest problems with education in this region are outside of the classroom and beyond the reach of education budgets. The problems stem from the lack of priority placed upon education in too many homes
From the hills of Oconee County to the swamps of Marion County, black and white alike, there are too many people who don't feel that an education is important for themselves or their children. Until you change the culture, you cannot change the outcomes.
North Carolina's political leaders actually point to the lotteries in Georgia and South Carolina as models.
God help them if they think our lotteries are gonna help them one bit.
I agree. Unfortunately, I think the lottery has less to do with education than in generating revenue that can offset the losses that will result from the tax cuts that likely will occur before next fall's elections.
I don't know if it is good or bad, but I do know that many a dollar is given to Virginia from NC residents in NE Carolina. I am glad to see that what ever money is generated from it will at least stay here and not go to fund schools for another state. Instead of being down on the idea lets look at the big picture, lets put NC earned money back into NC instead of VA. or other lottery states.
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