| It is predicted that families that spend a lot of money when it comes to gambling are more likely to also spend money on going out to restaurants, on gasoline for the car, or on drinking. A Purdue University economist believes they just don’t know how to save. Larry DeBoer, a professor on state tax policy, says that this could be because either they don’t know how to save, or they are inclined to spend constantly. DeBoer spoke yesterday to lawmakers, at the House of Representatives chamber for a Family Impact Seminar sponsored by Purdue. He was able to talk to them by using data from the Federal Consumer Expenditure Survey, conducted by the U.S. Census, to try to answer questions about gambling. He even dared to try to answer the question, “What would families be buying if they weren't spending money on gambling?” DeBoer claimed the question didn’t have any answers found in the federal data. All the data really showed was that families who lose at least $100 annually on gambling, seemed less likely to save, or spend money on home related issues, or education. The census survey didn’t ask families what they use non-gambling money for. DeBoer did say that the data could be seen as gambling leads to other spending. |
