Leonard Gilroy offers some advice to Kentucky’s neighbor, Virginia:

Lottery privatization makes sense in a number of ways. First, it’s difficult to argue that running a lottery is a core function of government. Put simply, businesses are best at running businesses, and governments are best suited to a regulatory and oversight role to ensure that the public interest is protected.

Next, state lotteries have a fairly stable revenue stream which can be maximized under private management. Private operators would have the incentive to introduce new, more popular games. And since lotteries are retail- and sales-driven enterprises — not areas of public sector expertise — private sector operators would more experienced and adept than government at using the latest technologies to target games to markets and generate more sales. With Virginia’s constitutional mandate that lottery proceeds be dedicated to education, this could mean more funds flowing into education with a reduced need to supplement them with state and local tax dollars.

Lastly, privatization would provide a means to transfer significant risks to private sector operators, most importantly the risks from competition with lotteries in adjoining states, casinos, and internet gaming.