Well folks, it looks as if we’ve been had again. Gov. Mike Easley’s promise to use lottery money for additional school funding seems to have been one more flim-flam.
Now the governor tells us, oops – he didn’t mean to say all the money would be spent on school programs for today and into the future. What he really meant was that a large chunk of the money would be used to reimburse the General Fund for the money already spent on schools.
Weren’t we foolish? Here we sat, believing what the governor said. It can’t possibly be his fault if we misinterpreted his words, can it?
Easley is singing a different song today from the one he sang when he was romancing the state’s citizens and Legislaturee HH. When he was trying to convince us to approve the lottery, he used an old Bob Dylan tune: “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.”
Legislators, swept up in the vision of millions of dollars cascading into state coffers, gave the governor what he wanted. In fairness to Easley and the Legislature, many North Carolinians also wanted the lottery. The arguments were good: A lot of North Carolina money was going to Virginia, Tennessee and South Carolina to buy tickets and it could stay here instead. Proceeds were to augment school spending and help districts with construction costs – but it would not replace existing school financing. Many N.C. residents liked that idea. The motives were pure. The execution, as it turns out, may be purely venal.
Easley, singing “Empty Pocket Blues,” has announced now that more than half the anticipated $400 million -- $210 million -- in lottery revenue will repay the General Fund for money it spent on his favorite school programs: helping at-risk kindergartners and reducing class sizes in lower grades. Both are laudable goals, but neither was included in Easley’s promotion of the lottery.
Many North Carolinians urged their representatives to approve it. It’s doubtful, from the hue and cry coming from the hinterlands, that they’re pleased with this turn of events, however.
Republican state Auditor Lee Merritt is crying “Foul,” and wants to set strenuous guidelines stating how lottery money can and cannot be used, now and forever.
The legality of Easley’s decision remains to be tested. Many legislators are singing “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” as they maneuver to find a way to negate the governor’s robbery of lottery funds. (Possibly, Easley thinks he has gotten away with robbing the Highway Trust Fund, so why not take one more step.) With a short session coming up soon, it isn’t clear whether they’ll be able to get around the governor’s plan.
An interesting side note to the governor’s diverting of lottery funds is the upcoming referendum to pay for nearly $69 million worth of new buildings and upgrades here in Lenoir County. A big share of that money was to come from – guess where! If lottery funds are sidetracked, less money will be available to help supplement the ambitious building program school officials wants. Where will that leave the average taxpayer if the bond is approved at the May 2 election?
While Easley goes tiptoeing through the lottery funds whistling “Dixie,” it’s time for voters to sing a song for the governor. How about “I Got Along Without Ya Before I Met Ya, Gonna Get Along Without Ya Now”?
Lee Raynor is editor of KinstonPress.com. She welcomes your comments at
leeraynor@kinstonpress.com.
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