Maybe State Government should buy a ticket?

With news this week that officials overspent last year’s state’s budget and now are staring at an additional $200 million shortfall for this year’s budget, it seems tonight may be as good a time as ever to purchase a Powerball ticket .

From THE STATE

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Let the budget cutting begin.

Again.

After cutting more than $1 billion from the state’s budget last year, a state panel will meet this morning to decide what to do with a new projected $200 million shortfall.

Last month, state economists cut their estimates of how much revenue the state will bring in this year. They noted revenues have continued to fall short of projections because of the recession.
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For as much controversy as we heard earlier this decade about the passing of a statewide-education lottery , this week we also heard about two billion reasons why it might not be as bad as people thought it would be.

So, let’s see….a winning ticket tonight could go a long way towards getting our state out of the red (for last year’s budget)…and with tough times still ahead for our state’s economy, should we consider rolling the dice and looking at alternative revenue sources for our state?

That would be a battle most officials wouldn’t want to have…again….during an election year…..but I wonder if we may see proposals for video poker or other forms of gambling in the General Assembly next year?

What are your thoughts?

I’ve often heard that if Myrtle Beach had casinos like Biloxi, MS or Atlantic City, it would do wonders for state revenues, tourism, and jobs.

After all, doesn’t the house always win ?