Lottery is a form of gambling that has grown to an enormous size and a major source of state revenues. Yet few, if any, states have a comprehensive policy about the lottery that takes into account all the ways in which it affects public welfare. Rather, the decision to introduce a lottery is usually a piecemeal, incremental process that happens within the confines of legislative and executive branches. This fragmentation of authority leads to a situation in which the lottery operates at cross-purposes with the general public interest.
Although the casting of lots to decide fates and distribute material goods has a long history (there are even examples in the Bible), public lotteries to sell tickets with prizes in money form are of comparatively recent origin. The first recorded public lotteries were held in the 15th century, in towns such as Ghent, Bruges, and Utrecht, for purposes such as municipal repairs and helping the poor.
The lottery was introduced into the American states by New Hampshire in 1964, and it has since spread to all but eight, with more than half of Americans playing the games at least once a year. State governments become dependent on the proceeds from these games, and pressures are constantly mounting to increase them.
Among the problems with the state-sponsored lottery is that it is run like a business, and the primary objective is to maximize profits. In order to do that, it promotes gambling to a wide variety of people: convenience store owners and operators; lottery suppliers, who contribute heavily to state political campaigns; the general population; teachers; and even state legislators, who are often repaid with lucrative jobs when they support the lottery.