Per capita lottery expenditures increased for each of the six New England States from 1994 to 1995. “Lottery” includes lotto, cash lotto, 4-digit, powerball, scratch tickets, daily, keno, pulltabs, numbers, and video lottery terminals (VLTs). Massachusetts leads New England in per capita lottery expenditures with $459.86 in 1995. Rhode Island’s per capita lottery expenditures increased 72% between 1994 and 1995. This increase may be related to the recent introduction of new VLT games and large ($100 million) Powerball jackpots. On a national level, lottery sales increased in all but three of the 37 states that currently have a lottery. Each state that had a casino reported increases in gross wagering. Charles Anderer, the Editor of International Gaming & Wagering Business, states that the new 1995 Report “shows yet again that lottery and casino industries tend to thrive wherever they are allowed (p. 6).”* While some observers believe that increased gambling results in increased rates of pathological gambling, further research will determine whether pathological gambling rates increase, decrease, or remain the same.
Sources:
*Anderer, C. (1996, July). The gaming beat goes on. International Gaming & Wagering Business (Suppl.). 17(7), p. 1. Lottery expenditure data adapted from: North American Gaming Report 1996.
International Gaming & Wagering Business (Suppl.). New York: International Gaming & Wagering Business. Population figures taken from: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Population Distribution Branch; http://www/census.gov/Press-Release/tab195es.prn
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