State Representative Kera Birkeland, the sponsor of HJR24, a bill that would allow a state-run lottery in Utah, faces long odds of her lottery legislation passing the state legislature but she is not giving up and believes it is an idea whose time has come.
Power Ball or Power Outage?
Utah is one of only five states including Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, and Nevada, that is without a state lottery and it is likely that the status quo will prevail despite Representative Kera Birkland’s efforts. The lawmaker from Morgan and former Mrs. Utah pageant contestant has stated her support for a lottery is predicated on generating funds to offset taxes for elderly Utah residents.
However, the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS), a mainstream Mormon denomination that prohibits gambling of any kind, including sports betting, is inextricably woven into Utah’s social and religious fabric. Its reach also extends deeply into Utah’s political realm, which makes this proposal a remote possibility to put it kindly.
“I think the people of Utah want it and I think representation matters,” Birkeland said. “So, I trust they will do what their constituency wants. Maybe I’m wrong.”
When asked about the bill, House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, told reporters “Well, it’ll save me some money going to Evanston (Wyoming) to buy lottery tickets.”
In Governor Spencer Cox’s annual State of the State address, he opened by mentioning several quirky things that make the Beehive State unique, including driving across state lines to buy lottery tickets.
“In Utah, we dine on fry sauce, funeral potatoes, and dirty diet sodas from our neighborhood Swig,” he said. “We play the lottery in Idaho and buy our fireworks in Wyoming.”
The bill would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers before Utah voters get an opportunity to have their voices heard in November.
Lottery Neighbors
Utah is surrounded by lottery states with many crossing state lines to buy lottery tickets. According to 2021 figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, Idaho located to the north, sold $343 million worth of lottery tickets, and generated $72.5 million in revenue while Utah’s eastern neighbor, Colorado, sold $733.8 million lottery tickets and netted $167.5 million. Both are popular destinations for Utah residents looking for lottery wagering.
“Realizing how much people are already spending [on the lottery] outside our state, to me it just seemed like, ‘Well, if we really wanted to be serious about it we could just use that funding,’” Birkeland said. “We wouldn’t even have to ask anyone else to change their habits at all and we would have quite a large influx of money.”
Yet, there are some who want quite the opposite. Delegate David Evans said, “There will be a combination of people who will importune our incoming Legislature for the purpose of securing a franchise to carry on lotteries and games of chance. I believe that such institutions are wrong in principle. … I say, let us make a prohibition in the Constitution so that they will not even consider the question at all.”
