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In 2004, U.S. state lotteries generated $145.5 billion for public coffers. Proponents often tout lotteries as nothing more than a voluntary tax that, although inefficient to collect, precludes debates on the politically charged issues of need, fairness and burden. Nevertheless, state-run lotteries rarely escape controversy. The new frontier in lottery legislation is the privatization of these games of chance. As states struggle with budget shortfalls, public officials increasingly propose to sell lottery enterprises to private groups.