From Robley Jones, GR &R, VEA:
The public perception is that education should be in no trouble because we are showered with lottery funds. Check out this news story on TV3 in Hampton Roads:
To put the lottery proceeds for education on perspective, State General Fund Aid to Education in FY 2012 will be $4.9 billion. The lottery proceeds for education in that year will be $435.2 million.
This money is not “bonus money” for our schools. It is used to fund ongoing programs, so the lottery is, in effect, just another tax to fund essential programs. If we did not have a lottery, these programs would need to be funded from the General Fund and a new revenue source would be needed.
Here is how the Lottery proceeds are being used in FY 2011:Lottery Proceeds Programs FY 2011
Foster Care $12,896,417
At-Risk $63,801,568
Virginia Preschool Initiative $67,607,769
Early Reading Intervention $14,720,585
Mentor Teacher $1,000,000
K-3 Primary Class Size $73,229,929
School Breakfast Program $2,687,265
SOL Algebra Readiness $9,018,272
Alternative Education $6,729,485
ISAEP $2,247,581
Special Education – Regional Tuition $75,141,153
Vocational Education – Categorical $10,400,829
No Child Left Behind/Education for a Lifetime $4,749,675
Project Graduation $2,774,478
Supplemental Basic Aid $938,311
Remedial Summer School $25,064,692
English as a Second Language $37,272,009
Textbooks (split funded) $24,919,982
Total $435,200,000
The bottom line is, the lottery money is controlled by the politicians, not the lottery. Virginia politicians can play funny money like they do with everything else. So add 20 teachers, take away 20 teachers and move them into administration is probably more common than most of us think.
Cooking the books is nothing new in this state. We have a balanced budget even though billions are owed to the VRS state pension fund.
Until recently, I thought the lottery ADDED to the education budget. The recent budget discussions revealed that, unlike the implications presented to the public, the lottery profits REPLACED the education budget.
Typical. Yet another way to allow more spending on pet projects instead of necessary things.
I thought it added to the education budget also. That is certainly the way it was presented to the public when the lottery referendum was being presented.
I am not sure what pet projects it is going for. Once again, this is so complicated, the average person would never figure it all out.
Smoke and mirrors! Our politicians know all about them. The same may well be said for the governor’s plan to privatize the state’s booze business. Right now the booze business puts $100 million into the state coffers. The governor says we will have a $500 million windfall if we sell the stores–this apparently is not so and not only that, the state will probably lose money in the long run. Smoke and mirrors!
Just remember, there is only about $10,000 of real cold hard cash floating around…the rest is all monkey money! 🙂
Ah…the permutations and combinations of the lottery. Monkey money!!! How funny.
Is that better or worse than monopoly money?
Personally, I don’t care if the booze privatization makes any money. The government should not be running a booze operation.
Its not about the money.
It is about tradition and about the state having control of the alcohol. It is also about profit.
Why do you care if the state ‘runs a booze operation?’ That sounds rather puritanical. Considering when they started doing it, there was a great deal to be concerned about as far as crime goes. Have you read our history?