Fifty-one percent of the lotteries revenue goes to player prizes, which only leaves fifteen percent of the revenue for retail commissions, expenses, and profit.
Most people don't realize how much money the public school system actually takes in from the state lottery. Since the lottery began in October of 1985, the public school system in California has run away with almost eleven billion dollars in contributions. The public school system in California receives approximately seven hundred fifty million dollars annually, as a contribution of the California State lottery (The Lottery and Public Education). These facts show that the public school system is very dependent on the state lottery.
There are many provisions for the use of lottery money, and how it is spent. The California State Lottery Act sets some of the ground rules for the use of the lottery money. The California state Lottery Act states that the lottery is to provide supplemental funding to California public education on all levels from kindergarten through higher education plus several specialized schools. The schools can only use the contributions for instructional purposes. The money cannot be used for the acquisition of property, building of facilities, or for funding research. Eighty to ninety percent of the funds contributed to the California public school system are used to attract and retain teachers. Schools also use the funds for computer labs, teacher workshops, and science programs (Frequently Asked Questions).
Indian reservations, which are among the poorest communities in the United States, are helped immensely by gambling. As James Murray said, "Indian gaming has become the industry that tribal governments can use to overturn one hundred fifty years of federal neglect" (Statistics on Economic impact of Indian Gaming). In February 1997 the Indian Gaming Commission reported one hundred fifteen tribes with Gaming Class III operations and one hundred sixty four tribes with operations in twenty-four states.