Anthony C. Krautmann (De Paul University) James E. Ciecka (De Paul University)
Abstract
This paper outlines the conditions under which a state-run lottery yields an expected return greater than its costs. The analysis considers the possibility of multiple winner, the fact that lottery winnings are typically paid out over a 10 to 20 year span, the taxation of lottery winnings as income, and the government's vigorish. We also derive the conditions under which it is worthwhile to buy every possible outcome of the litter, hence guaranteeing a winning ticket. We then apply our analysis to the recent $106.5 million Florida Lottery and the $27 million Virginia Lottery in which an Australian consortium attempted to buy the pot.
Download Info
To download:
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the
proper application to
view it first. Information about this may be contained
in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read
the IDEAS help
page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS
site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
Volume (Year): 19 (1993) Issue (Month): 2 (Spring) Pages: 157-164 Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML
(with abstract),
plain text
(with abstract),
BibTeX,
RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite),
ReDIF
Contact details of provider: Postal: c/o Iona College, 715 North Avenue, New Rochelle, New York 10801-1890 USA Phone: (914) 633-2088 Fax: (914) 633-2549 Email: Web page: http://www.iona.edu/eea/ More information through EDIRC
Find related papers by JEL classification: D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
Cited by: (explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)