Maryland Question 1 in 2018
This is essentially a state funding bill that looks like a gambling bill. What it really does is that it specifically allocates monies that are already coming from gambling tax revenues:
- A “yes” vote s amending the state constitution to dedicate certain revenue from video lotteries to education as supplementary funding.
- A “no” vote opposes this amendment to the state constitution to dedicate certain revenue from video lotteries to education as supplementary funding.
Therefore, this is not an additional tax on casinos or anything of that nature. No additional monies are being generated in any way whatsoever, it’s just a question of the allocation of monies already being earned. In this case, additional money will be allocated towards education.
The way this usually works, at least with state lottery departments, is that they say the proceeds benefit education…but really the kind of don’t. In the case of most states, you would fund education anyway, but state lottery revenues that go, “Directly,” to education give you the ability to use other revenues for other things when those revenues would otherwise be going towards education.
That’s not to say that this author is against education spending, or even State Lottery, this author is in favor of both of those things. What this is saying is that the states call the spending, “For education,” but the money itself would be going to education anyway, it just wouldn’t be coming from the lottery revenues and less money would go to the general fund.
This measure will essentially increase the minimum guaranteed funding for education. The State of Maryland already has minimum education funding, but what this Question would do is demand a certain amount to come from the casino revenue taxes and be added to what are the current minimums for education funding. It indirectly increases the minimum.
Here is where the very limited spending is being done:
| Issue: | Maryland Question 1 |
|---|---|
| Spending For | $750,000 |
| Spending Against | $0 |
The Maryland Promise Committee, an educational organization, is the only entity to have spent money on this either way and s the age of the bill. There does not seem to be any spending against reported.
Our opinion, if you are in the State of Maryland, is that there is absolutely no reason to vote against this one. This does not increase taxes for anybody, not even the casinos. All it does is guarantee that certain amounts of the tax revenue that already come from the casinos anyway go to the education fund rather than the general fund.
