'Yes' to Referendum A

'Yes' to Referendum A
Give GOCO the tools to spend lottery money well

October 23, 2001

Not all votes come down to a choice between good and bad. Sometimes the choice can be between good and better. At other times all we can do is to choose to make the best of a bad situation.

Put Referendum A in that last category. Voting "yes" is not great, just the best we can do.

Referendum A would allow Great Outdoors Colorado to go into debt to buy open space, protect wildlife habitat and safeguard historic ranches. By borrowing ahead it could leverage the money it gets from the lottery in order to protect unique or especially valuable parcels of land now, before they get more expensive, and to take advantage of offerings that may otherwise be beyond its reach. That sounds shaky to some in light of today’s economy, but it is the best way to fund a program the voters clearly want.

Under the proposal, which was put forth by the Governor’s Commission for Saving Open Space, the agency could issue up to $115 million in bonds, with total principal and interest not to exceed $180 million. The debt would be repaid from future lottery proceeds, which should be more than sufficient.

In fiscal year 2000, GOCO received $43.5 million in lottery money. For the year before the total was $31.2. Lottery revenue will likely decrease if the economy continues to weaken, but Coloradans have shown no inclination to give up buying lottery tickets.

And, therein lies the problem. Simply put, a lottery is a lousy way to fund government programs. It is regressive, deceptive and borders on dishonest.

Lottery money comes disproportionately from the poor, is predicated on a misapprehension of basic mathematics and relies on promotions that embrace the same kind of misstatement of risk as tobacco ads, only in reverse. While cigarette companies try to minimize health risks that in fact border on certainty, the lottery succeeds by emphasizing what is really the extraordinarily remote possibility of easy money. The lottery is a sucker bet, and depending on it puts the state in the position of pimping its own people.

That said, these facts remain: The voters approved the lottery, expanded it and support it. Moreover, they have said – twice – that they want the money it generates spent on parks and open space. Given those clearly expressed wishes, GOCO should be given the tools to do its job right.

Vote "yes" on Referendum A.