A lottery is an arrangement of prizes by chance. The word is derived from the Dutch noun lot, meaning “fate.” In the 17th century it was common for the public to organize and conduct lotteries to raise money for a variety of purposes, including relief of the poor and for various government usages. This practice was hailed as a painless form of taxation, as people voluntarily spent their own money to support public services.
The modern state lotteries, which started in 1964 in New Hampshire, were launched in search of new sources of revenue. They quickly spread to the rest of the Northeast and later the West, becoming a major source of funds for education, veterans’ health care, and other programs without adding taxes.
Almost all states operate a lottery. They legislate a monopoly for themselves; establish a government agency or public corporation to run the lottery (as opposed to licensing private firms in return for a portion of the profits); start operations with a small number of relatively simple games; and, under pressure to generate additional revenues, progressively expand the scope and complexity of the game.
The public’s propensity to spend on chance events is an undisputed fact, and there’s no doubt that the lottery’s promotional strategies play on this instinct. But what’s less clear is whether the business of promoting gambling actually serves the public interest, especially in an era of income inequality and limited social mobility.