Okay, so the lottery's not good for poor people, but it's helping schools, so we can't get rid of it. Think of the children! The California Lottery alone raised $1.39 billion and gave $97 million to the Los Angeles Unified School district for the 2014–2015 school year. This can't possibly have a downside.
Unless you've been skimming through this article just for the lovely pictures, you've probably guessed there's a big downside. Though many states say that they're giving the lottery money to specific causes like education or environmental protection, the money often goes into the general state fund. From there, the money can be used for anything, and the lottery's pet causes may see no effect from the millions of dollars.
But some states do make sure that the lotto money is specifically allocated for their cause. Unfortunately, that means legislators can factor all that sweet lottery cash into the budget and start giving out fewer government funds. In the end, education spending stays exactly the same, or gets worse. According to Patrick Pierce, political scientist, "Given a few years, a state would have spent more on education without a lottery." In 2015, California received a C- grade for its schools in an Education Week study and placed 41st in the country in the category of having "conditions that help children succeed." Looks like that billion dollars isn't making a big difference.
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