State-run and multistate lotteries have never been a good idea, even if the long lines in Primm last week demonstrate their popularity.
For many lawmakers, it’s tempting to wonder just how much revenue Nevada is missing out on by prohibiting state-run lotteries — which is a part of the reason the Legislature recently moved forward on repealing the state’s constitutional prohibition on such games when it passed AJR5.
Advocates of bringing games such as Powerball to the Silver State sell the idea by describing lottery revenue as a nontax alternative to more politically unpalatable options such as property tax hikes, the creation of an income tax or further increasing sales taxes.
