The District of Columbia is not thrilled that its residents are traveling to Maryland, Pennsylvania and West Virginia to gamble in casinos. Starved for cash, like states across the country, the district wants some of the millions in revenue that gambling generates each year.
So district officials want residents to gamble closer to home — inside their homes, actually. Or in cafes, restaurants and bars. By year’s end the district hopes to introduce an Internet gambling hub that would allow Washington residents to play blackjack, poker and other casino-style games.
“They can do it from Starbucks, a restaurant, bar or hotel, or from a private residence,” said Buddy Roogow, executive director of the D.C. Lottery, who expects the new games to eventually raise $9 million a year. “That’s real money in D.C.”...
Scott McMahan wrote: If the "education lottery" is any indication, gambling money doesn't live up to its promise of easy revenues. My state launched an "education lottery" with great fanfare, as the permanent answer to education funding problems. With the gambling money flowing in, taxes would be lower and schools would be better. Yet every year (especially in August), there's a drumbeat of news about how education funding is being cut and how there's not enough money to run the school systems. What happened to all that gambling revenue? Where is all the gambling money going?
Same thing happened in California back in the late 1970s. The slogan then was: "When you win (the jackpot), our SCHOOLS win too!". Well, our schools are now BROKE. Go figure.
If the "education lottery" is any indication, gambling money doesn't live up to its promise of easy revenues. My state launched an "education lottery" with great fanfare, as the permanent answer to education funding problems. With the gambling money flowing in, taxes would be lower and schools would be better. Yet every year (especially in August), there's a drumbeat of news about how education funding is being cut and how there's not enough money to run the school systems. What happened to all that gambling revenue? Where is all the gambling money going?
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