North Carolina Family Policy Council

The legality of the North Carolina Lottery Act will be the central question in a trial set for Monday, March 20. The case will be argued before Wake County Superior Court Judge Henry W. Hight, Jr. just 10 days before lottery tickets are scheduled to go on sale. Last month, Judge Hight denied the state's motion to dismiss the lawsuit and upheld the standing of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit-including the North Carolina Family Policy Council. Former N.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Orr, who heads up the N.C. Institute for Constitutional Law, will be arguing the plaintiff's case before the court. A verdict could come as early as midweek.

The lawsuit does not challenge the merits of the lottery as public policy, rather it disputes the legality of how the legislation was passed. The legal question is whether the General Assembly violated Article II, Section 23 of the North Carolina Constitution when it passed the Lottery Act. This constitutional provision requires that "revenue bills," or bills that (1) raise money on the credit of the state, (2) pledge the faith of the state for the payment of any debt, or (3) impose any tax upon the people of the state, must be voted on two separate days in both the N.C. House and N.C. Senate and that the "yeas" and "nays" on those votes be recorded in official legislative records. Neither party disputes that the N.C. House and Senate failed to follow procedures when they approved the lottery legislation. Plaintiffs argue, among other things, that the Lottery Act constitutes a tax on the people of North Carolina, and because the General Assembly did not observe these procedures, that the law was passed in an unconstitutional manner.

For an in-depth explanation of this legal challenge download the North Carolina Family Policy Council 's paper "Lottery Lawsuit: Insuring the Integrity of the Legislative Process" by clicking here.

To understand more about how the lottery constitutes a tax, download the North Carolina Family Policy Council's new policy paper "Is the Lottery a Tax? Generating Revenue through State-Sponsored Gambling" by clicking here.