"The funds being used for education" turned out like this

CA lottery pays schools 1 million.
1 million from CA taxes are no longer needed, because the lottery paid it. So, that 1 million of taxes goes somewhere else.

If lottery players, instead bought $1 of bitcoin for the last 10 years, all of them would be rich. Instead, we have most of them still poor, and a few, highlighted winners.

I agree with calling it a "poor tax"