It seems nothing fun ever happens in Utah. There’s skiing and hiking, but not much else, so the idea of a Utah lottery almost seems like the plot for a “Footloose” sequel. But hold on a moment… there is actually a small movement to establish the lotto there… from an actual Legislator none the less! What a way to start the year!
Yes, the state of Utah has outlawed or forbidden most everything fun and enjoyable. That’s why their only professional sports team is the Jazz (insert rim shot here). But in these tough economic times, it seems there is a movement to look for cash in the strangest of places. And that brings us to State Legislator Kera Birkeland.
The new piece of legislation put forth by Ms. Birkeland would establish a Utah lottery as a way of helping the states senior citizens with property taxes. A noble cause which has met with immediate and overwhelming backlash from folks on the streets of Salt Lake all the way to the Governor’s mansion.
Right now, the lottery is legal and available in most every state across America, except for Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, and believe it or not, Nevada (weird, huh?)! And despite the immediate, knee-jerk reaction of most state residents, Birkeland stated she is more concerned about senior citizens living on fixed incomes.
We admire her moxie, but establishing a Utah lottery may require an act of God. After all, this is not the first time some upstart politician has tried to bring gambling to the state in one form or another. All have failed, but Birkeland said she is up for the challenge.
She better be, because establishing the lotto there would require a change to the state constitution, and changing the constitution requires the support of two-thirds of the legislators in both the State Senate and House of Representatives. If it somehow passed, it would still need to be approved by voters. And that’s a long, long road.