Data shows gambling is driving force in NH sin tax revenue – NH Business Review

For FY 2024, all the games and gambling under the NH Lottery Commission outperformed tobacco and liquor tax revenue — by a lot

More and more, according to the data, tax revenue from state-sanctioned gambling — from Keno and scratch tickets to casinos and sports betting — is becoming more valuable to the state’s budget than the other so-called “sin taxes.”

For the state fiscal year 2024, all the games and gambling under the auspices of the New Hampshire Lottery Commission outperformed tobacco and liquor tax revenue … by a lot.

Lottery Commission-generated revenue was $43 million over budget in the fiscal year that ended on June 30. Meanwhile, tax revenue from liquor sales was $9 million under budget and tax revenue from tobacco sales was $24 million under budget.

Sin taxes derive revenues from items that society might deem as potentially harmful. In New Hampshire, sin tax revenue comes from tobacco, alcohol and gambling. There’ll be a fourth if policymakers ever come to terms with legalizing marijuana.

According to Phil Sletten, research director at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, the Lottery Commission as a percentage is the state’s fastest growing source of tax revenue.

“Long term, we’ve seen some really substantial trends in Lottery Commission revenues. Between state fiscal years 2017 and 2023, profits transferred from the Lottery Commission constituted the fastest growing major source of revenue for the general fund and the Education Trust Fund,” said Sletten.

“When I say fastest growing, I mean in percentage terms,” he added. “While business tax revenues nearly doubled in this time period and resulted in more growth in total dollars, Lottery Commission profits to the Education Trust Fund were about 161% higher in state fiscal year 2023 than they were in state fiscal year 2017, and I’m using 2023 because those are the most recent audited numbers.”

According to unaudited fiscal year 2024 numbers, about $3.32 billion in revenue came into the general and education funds. That’s about 4% over plan and 3.5% more than FY 2023.

As a percentage of the whole, business taxes generated about $1.2 billion, or 36.7% of all revenue.

Sin taxes on tobacco, liquor, beer and gaming generated a total of $516.4 million, or 15.5% of the whole.

Sin taxes in FY 2024 outperformed state property taxes ($363.8 million, 10.9% of the whole) and Meals and Rentals Tax ($328.1 million, 9.9% of the whole).

Of the sin taxes, only the Lottery Commission reported positive results against the previous fiscal year — up 7.3%, while revenue from the tobacco tax was down 12.8%, liquor was down 10.9%, and beer tax was down 6.2%.

The Lottery Commission reported a banner revenue year in FY 2024. And, if current trends hold true, another might be in the offing for FY 2025, which comes to a close on June 30, 2025.

Gambling a big player

State budget writers are keeping a close eye on all revenue sources as they begin to assemble the FY 2026 budget. The new budget year starts on July 1, 2025. Gambling revenue could be a big player in the budget.

The revenue report for October, for example, showed Lottery Commission revenue of $19 million, 13.1% above what was projected.

“Revenue generated through the Lottery Commission was a large contributor to October’s overall surplus relative to the State Revenue Plan,” the Fiscal Policy Institute said in its analysis of the October numbers.

While the Lottery Commission was above plan, tobacco was $10.2 million behind and liquor was $4.9 million behind plan, according to the October report.

At the close of FY 2024, the New Hampshire Lottery reported in excess of $631 million in total sales, marking a nearly 5% or $29 million increase over FY 2023. With a portion of that revenue going toward the state’s public schools, the Lottery Commission generated an all-time high of $200.7 million in revenue supporting education, reflecting a nearly 7% or $13 million year-over-year increase.

The New Hampshire Lottery Commission manages all lottery operations in the state, including scratch games, New Hampshire Powerball, New Hampshire Mega Millions, Tri-State Megabucks, Tri-State Pick3/Pick4 Daily Numbers games, Gimme 5, Fast Play games, Lucky For Life, KENO 603 and iLottery. The Commission also regulates charitable gaming, including Bingo, Lucky 7 and games of chance (poker, craps, roulette), along with simulcast racing, fantasy sports and sports wagering.

“Our goal is always to maximize revenue for New Hampshire schools, while providing our players with fun and entertaining games. We certainly hit the mark this year,” Charlie McIntyre, Lottery Commission executive director, said in August with the release of the FY 2024 revenue data. “With the introduction of exciting new games, record high numbers from Tri-State Megabucks, new sports betting opportunities and more, we are confident 2025 will be even more successful.”

With the professional and college football season well underway, Commission officials are putting their money down on an even better year, especially when it comes to sports betting, which became legal in the state in 2019.

In the first two weeks of the season, New Hampshire players had wagered more than $13 million on NFL games alone. It marks a $1.7 million increase in total wagering compared to the first two weeks of last year’s NFL season.

The state contracted with DraftKings to handle its sportsbook wagering through its app and live at four locations in the Granite State: the Brook in Seabrook, Revo Casino in Dover, Revo Casino in Manchester and Gate City Casino in Nashua.

“Each year, football continues to be one of our biggest sports betting drivers. With an ever-expanding lineup of betting options for our players, the New Hampshire Lottery and DraftKings are confident that momentum will continue throughout this season,” said McIntyre.

Betting it all

Digging into the Lottery’s FY 2024 numbers (as yet unaudited), the gross revenue was $633,716,687 from the games such as KENO, Powerball, Mega Millions, Megabucks, and the rest. There was a total of $413,815,869 in prizes awarded. So, for every dollar spent on Lottery games, the average win was about 65 cents.

Separately, sports betting earned the state a total of $33.65 million in FY 2024. The total “handle” bet by players was $753 million, with players wagering more than $661.4 million through the DraftKings online sportsbook and nearly $91.6 million at New Hampshire’s retail sportsbooks.

The Granite State’s 12 charitable gaming establishments generated an additional $36.7 million in revenue in support of local charities in FY 2024 and $29.2 million for New Hampshire’s public schools. These casinos are licensed to donate a portion of daily proceeds to local nonprofit organizations.

For Sletten, the long-term prognosis for Lottery Commission revenue is better than Liquor Commission revenue in the sale of liquor, wine, beer and tobacco products (including e-cigarettes and vape products).

“We at least know that Liquor Commission revenues are not growing to nearly the same degree that Lottery Commission revenues are and with tobacco tax revenues, those are expected to be in long-term decline,” said Sletten.

In the last few years, the best year for Liquor Commission revenue was FY 2021 when revenue peaked at $252.8 million; liquor/wine tax revenue was $230.8 and beer tax revenue was $13.7 million.

FY 2022 saw Liquor Commission revenue drop to $241.3 million, then drop further to $235.5 in FY 2023.

So is it a good bet for New Hampshire to be dependent on the gambling sin tax?

Sletten sees both sides.

“There could be a different direction or a different trend in lottery revenues that could serve to provide diversity to revenue streams that the state has that may be less tied directly to economic fortunes,” said Sletten. He cited a scenario where economic conditions might not favor the meals and rooms tax or business profits tax but might favor gaming.

He also acknowledges the cost of gambling addiction.

“Gambling addiction may generate cost to society, including both economic and social costs. Some key research suggests that the negative effects of gambling and gambling addiction may fall disproportionate on people with lower incomes,” said Sletten. “These relationships are likely complex, and causality may be difficult to determine in all cases, but it suggests that negative impacts may be disproportionate on those who can least absorb them, and that can affect the broader economy, as well as individual household budgets.”

A Pew Charitable Trust report from 2018 entitled “Are Sin Taxes Healthy for State Budgets?” had two pieces of advice: 1) “Sin taxes are a useful tool for supporting public health objectives and can be effective in raising revenue in the short term”, and “2) States should carefully assess the sustainability of these revenue sources in the long term, especially for funding ongoing budget commitments, to avoid structural budget challenges.”

A research paper published in June posits the notion that the growth of sports betting has had a particularly negative effect on economically vulnerable households.

“Gambling Away Stability: Sports Betting’s Impact on Vulnerable Households” argues that, “despite being marketed as a form of entertainment, the industry’s profitability suggests that the typical bettor faces negative expected returns.”

As a result, it said, the betting behavior displaces more favorable economic habits such as saving money and paying down credit card debt. “These effects concentrate among financially constrained households, as credit card debt increases, available credit decreases and overdraft frequency rises,” it said.

What does the Lottery Commission’s executive director think of gambling as a state policy to generate revenue?

“I always joke: I don’t make policy; I’m the instrument of policy,” said McIntyre. His job is to make it all work.

“One of the reasons to do this is because, like, for example, sports betting, was to bring an illegal activity to be legal, to be well regulated, add the consumer protections,” said McIntyre.

“If you have a problem with our platform of DraftKings, you can call me directly, and I’ll follow up and we’ll investigate, whereas you don’t have the luxury of that in the illegal market or your friend’s card game in his basement,” he added. “Yes, I believe it’s being done safely. As for if it’s a good idea, that’s a policy decision that the government, i.e. the Legislature, the governor make that.”

The New Hampshire Council for Responsible Gambling was established through the 2019 legislation legalizing sports betting in the Granite State and is tasked with education, prevention and treatment related to gambling disorders in New Hampshire.

It used $290,000 from the state to contract with the New Hampshire Council on Problem Gambling to build training and clinical capacity, and to facilitate outreach and awareness activities. That funding ran out at the end of FY23 and has not been renewed.

The growth of gambling addiction issues are growing as opportunities to gamble are growing, according to Ed Talbot. “There’s more calls each year,” said Talbot. The organization mans a 24/7 hotline: 603-724-1605.

As advertising for gambling has increased, particularly by DraftKings for sports betting, Talbot is seeing more issues with a younger generation.

“One alarming statistic I just saw is the highest percentage of people indicating a potential problem is the 17 to 24 (age group), and I think a lot of that is based on the advertising that’s going on, especially around sports gambling,” said Talbot. “To me, that just says there’s going with the next generation, the problem is going to be more so.”

In addition to counseling services and treatment recommendations for gambling addiction, Talbot said he wants the council to advocate for stronger self-exclusion, where gamblers who believe that they have a problem can voluntarily bar themselves from entering one or more gambling venues to prevent them from gambling.

In New Hampshire, according to Talbot, that has to be done in person, at each establishment the individual wants to be excluded from. He said other states — Pennsylvania, for example — make it much easier through an online process.

Talbot is unsure about future direct state funding for the New Hampshire Council on Problem Gambling. “Fiscal Year 2024 we’ve been on our own, and fiscal year 2025 unless we get some supplemental funding, we’ll be on our own again,” he said.

Ironically, Talbot said the council feels it has to participate in casino nights in order to raise operating funds. “We have participated in charity gaming, which is not something we would like to do,” said Talbot, “but we’re a nonprofit, and we have taken advantage of that and gotten anywhere between $25,000 and $30,000 a year out of that.”