The lottery is a form of chance-based prize distribution for money or goods. Generally, participants purchase tickets and the winner is chosen by drawing lots. The drawing may take place in a public setting or privately within a closed group of individuals. It is a common method for distributing prizes in games of chance, as well as for allocating vacancies in teams or organizations (e.g., a sports team or university placement). In addition, lotteries are used to distribute state and national income tax revenues among the people in a manner that is not directly proportional to the wealth of each participant.

Although the casting of lots to decide fates has a long record in history, the modern lottery began in the 15th century. Several towns in the Low Countries held public lotteries to raise funds for town walls and to help the poor. One of the first recorded lotteries to award money as a prize was in Bruges, Belgium.

Lottery revenues have exploded in recent decades, but growth has since stalled. New games are offered and the advertising campaign is stepped up to encourage more participation. This has produced a new set of issues including the problem of compulsive gamblers, alleged regressive impact on lower-income groups, and other concerns of public policy.

State controllers determine how much Lottery funding is allocated to each county based on average daily attendance for K-12 and community college school districts and full-time enrollment at higher education institutions. To see how much each county has received in Lottery funding, click or tap on a county in the map below or enter the county name in the search box to the right.