The Pinehurst Republican opposes a state lottery, as do we. But he is prepared to accept the inevitable. He fears the North Carolina General Assembly is on the brink of passing legislation putting the state in the gambling business, and without benefit of a referendum.
If lottery supporters do prevail, Blake says it’s time to make sure some of that money is set aside for future needs. He has crafted a bill that would save a portion of the revenue, with interest, for at least 50 years.
In the meantime, it would be beyond the legislature’s reach — a provision that might be more than some sticky-fingered members of the General Assembly could stand.
Blake’s innovative proposal would have the state save 5 percent from lottery proceeds for interest-bearing investment.
He wants voters to approve the measure in the form of a constitutional amendment — an action that, if successful, would seal the principal and its interest until at least 2057, when that should come to a tidy sum, say $9 billion. And even then, he wants the legislature to draw only from the interest to cover essential services. The interest alone could amount to hundreds of millions of bucks.
“Compounding interest is the eighth wonder of the world,” he says.
One intriguing thing about the idea, other than the novelty, is that 5 percent represents a small amount from expected lottery proceeds. It is not tax money, at least not taxes in the traditional sense. The state treasury wouldn’t even miss it.
“The leadership wants a lottery,” Blake says, “and it occurred to me that if the lottery does not pass, a trust fund would be a neat place to put some of the money. I think it’s a concept that has merit.”
So do we.
The concept of a reserve fund is not new. In fact, Blake’s Democratic opponent last year, the conservative Oscar Harris of Dunn, promised to work toward establishing a reserve fund if elected. He lost to Blake, but now Blake has adopted a version of the concept and added a fresh twist.
Lotteries are a quick-fix gimmick. They produce unpredictable proceeds. They tend to prey on the poor and ignorant.
But if the legislators should ultimately decide North Carolina must have one — which we hope they won’t — they should give serious consideration to making Blake’s idea a part of it.
