In The Netherlands, both running a lottery and running a physical casinos are reserved for two state-owned companies. By law, half of the profit goes to charity. The rest goes to the government.
In Sweden, the government-owned liquor chain Systembolaget is the only one allowed to sell stuff containing more than 3.5% alcohol. Norway has basically the same thing going on.
The idea is that things like gambling and alcohol consumption have an overall negative impact on society, but completely banning them will cause even more harm. Having a state monopoly makes it easier to promote safe and moderate consumption, as no profit is required and criminal figures are kept out - at least in theory.
Well, these aren't state-owned entities, which is a key distinction. Most people are okay with state-run monopolies. This more akin to if The Netherlands updated their constitution to say that only Coca-cola soft drinks are allowed to be sold in the country.
Most states would put something along the lines of, "A state gaming commission will be created, with the duties and structure granted to them by the Congress of <state>." Then pass a subsequent law outlining the nitty-gritty details.
IANAL, but I suppose this is the result of some fuckery by the casino owners. It's probably easier to modify the constitution than it is to get actual laws past.
Oregon has a state run liquor board over distribution. It's great as technically they own all the product in a licensed liquor store so prices are identical. You can walk into any place, make a request for a certain bottle, and it usually arrives in a few days at the same price it would be anywhere else. If only we could apply that model to other services...
And they run a nice, light weight web site designed in the mid-2000s which lets you search the entire inventory for the liquor you want, where to buy it and for how much.
In The Netherlands, both running a lottery and running a physical casinos are reserved for two state-owned companies. By law, half of the profit goes to charity. The rest goes to the government.
In Sweden, the government-owned liquor chain Systembolaget is the only one allowed to sell stuff containing more than 3.5% alcohol. Norway has basically the same thing going on.
The idea is that things like gambling and alcohol consumption have an overall negative impact on society, but completely banning them will cause even more harm. Having a state monopoly makes it easier to promote safe and moderate consumption, as no profit is required and criminal figures are kept out - at least in theory.