A little bit more evidence of lottery regressivity: The Kansas State Lottery

This paper examines the existence of regressivity at the Kansas State Lottery using county level data. The classic t-test is used to test if the mean per capita bet in classes, defined as being below or above the median state income, are the same. The results show that the means of the per capita bets are not statistically different. Another test directly tests regressivity using the mean of bets expressed as a percentage of income. The results show that lower income counties bet more as a percentage of income. The second test also defines classes as being below or above the median educational level, labor force participation rate, employment rate, unemployment rate, population density, percentage white and the population size. The results show that Kansas runs a regressive lottery.I would like to thank Robert Cherry, Michael Grossman and Richard Sage for comments and suggestions made during the analysis of this paper. The research assistance of Allan Markowitz and Christopher Mobilia is gratefully acknowledged.