After her attempts to legalize the Utah Lottery fell short earlier this year, Rep. Kera Birkeland is back on the trail and trying again.
Birkeland announced on Monday that she will reintroduce her proposed constitutional amendment to legalize a retail lottery in the Beehive State. She said she received more support than expected in her first effort, resulting in another attempt to pass the proposed amendment.
Utah is currently one of five states without a retail lottery. Birkeland’s first bill received two-thirds support in the House but failed to amass the same in the Senate.
Utahns spend $200 million on lottery tickets outside the state
While Utah does not have a lottery, five of its border states do. Many Utahns live close enough to drive across the border and purchase tickets, especially when lottery draw games like Powerball and Mega Millions have large jackpots.
Birkeland estimates Utahns spend $200 million on lottery tickets each year. She told Fox 13 News her primary motive for legalizing the lottery was to “just capture the existing behavior of people who will drive across the state line to buy those tickets.”
However, Gov. Spencer Cox did not support Birkeland’s first attempt at amending the state constitution. Neither did the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which makes up roughly half of Utah’s population and strongly influences the state government.
As a result, Birkeland is looking to find a middle ground this time. She proposed to legalize lottery sales only in counties bordering other states with lotteries, which would:
- Keep lottery ticket sales illegal in the middle of the state. This includes Utah’s four most populous counties, Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, and Weber, which account for more than 70% of Utah’s population.
- Keep lottery ticket sales illegal on Utah’s western side, which borders Nevada. Nevada has no state-run lottery due to its gambling industry, so Utahns already cannot drive west to buy lottery tickets.
- Keep Utahns (and their money) within the state to buy lottery tickets rather than having them cross state lines, where their business benefits other states’ programs.
Lower property taxes a selling point for Utah Lottery
Birkeland’s amendment proposes using lottery proceeds to reduce property taxes in Utah. She hopes this will resonate with many hard-working Republicans in her historically conservative state, many of which she said were affected by increasing property taxes at the end of last year.
She stated, “What moral high ground are we standing on when we say that’s not government’s role?”
In an exclusive April interview with PlayiLottery, Birkeland added:
“My message is the fact that this is 100% voluntary. No one is requiring, or forcing, residents to purchase lottery tickets. It’s a voluntary opportunity that can also help government funding. I’m all in favor of shrinking the size of government. But, instead of growing it on the backs of the taxpayers, we have this money we’re just simply not collecting that can help fund the state.”
Birkeland believes lottery could come in 2027
Utah’s constitution expressly prohibits all forms of gaming, including lotteries. In addition to removing lotteries from the constitution, the proposed legislation would legalize charity raffles, which are also illegal under the letter of the law.
Birkeland said 2027 is a realistic target date to legalize the state lottery. The most significant hurdles include religious motivation and opposition from Senate President Stuart Adams, whose term ends on Jan. 1, 2027.
“I think it’s just an attitude and I think a lot of it is due to religion, unfortunately,” Birkeland said. “(Utah) being prominent with Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, people just believe that (lottery) is just immoral and it will harm communities.
“There’s definitely potential (for a Utah lottery). I think when the Senate President retires, or is no longer in office, that parimutuel betting and the lottery, I believe, will fare a really strong chance.”
Birkeland also cited hypocrisy in the state allowing alcohol and tobacco sales despite their proven harms. Each of these generates more than $100 million in tax revenue every year while the lottery remains sidelined.
Photo by Rick Bowmer / AP
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