Illinois State Lottery

Current logo of the Illinois Lottery.

The Illinois Lottery is operated by Northstar Lottery Group for the state of Illinois. The Lottery began July 1, 1974, when US lotteries were confined to the Northeast and Midwest.

Televised drawings are based at the West Bradley Place studios of Chicago's CW affiliate WGN-TV (channel 9), and occur twice daily, with the midday drawing at 12:40 p.m. CT during that station's noon newscast Monday-Fridays and on weekend afternoons during syndicated programming; and the evening drawing at 9:22 p.m. CT during the 9 p.m. newscast seven nights a week, with numbers also immediately relayed over the radio minutes later on WBBM (780/105.9), which formerly also broadcast the drawings until 2006 when it discontinued airing them to maintain their "news wheel" schedule. The drawings are supervised by the accounting firm of E.C. Ortiz & Co., LLP and verified by the auditing firm of Mayer Hoffman McCann, P.C. Illinois' is the only lottery to have their non multi-jurisdictional drawings televised nationwide (via WGN-TV's national superstation feed WGN America).

The Illinois Lottery is one of 44 members of Mega Millions, and one of 44 Powerball jurisdictions (whose drawings are also broadcast by WGN-TV in the Chicago area and nationally on WGN America); 43 lotteries offer both games. The Lottery also offers Lotto (players pick 6 of 52 numbers) with a smaller jackpot, on a Monday-Wednesday-Saturday night drawing schedule. Pick 3 and Pick 4 numbers are drawn twice daily; the same numbers apply to those playing the same games in neighboring Iowa. Lucky Day Lotto (5/39), with a minimum jackpot of $100,000, is drawn nightly.

In 2009 the Illinois legislature passed amendments to the Lottery Law that approved the Internet Pilot Program to launch the sale of Mega Millions and Illinois Lotto on the Internet. On December 23, 2011, a U.S. Justice Department decision provided much anticipated clarity to Illinois' and other US lotteries by confirming that the sale of lottery products over the internet by US lotteries was legal.

On March 25, 2012, Illinois became the first jurisdiction to allow internet lottery sales. Adults with an IP address within Illinois can play the Lottery in this manner. The program will run for 36 to 48 months on a trial basis.

Winners of a Mega Millions (on an Illinois Lottery ticket) or a Lotto jackpot must choose the cash option within 60 days of the drawing if the cash option is desired. (A Powerball jackpot winner on an Illinois Lottery ticket has 60 days after claiming to make their choice.)

Like other state lotteries, the legal age to buy a lottery ticket is 18.

Lottery games

Current in-house drawings

Pick 3

Pick 3 (originally known as The Daily Game) began on February 19, 1980. It started out as a one-drawing-a-day game Mondays through Saturdays. On March 20, 1983, Pick 3 added Sunday drawings. On December 20, 1993, it expanded to 13 draws weekly. Pick 3 draws 3 sets of balls numbered 0 through 9. Prices, options, and payouts vary.

Pick 4

Pick 4, similar to Pick 3, began on February 16, 1982, drawing Tuesdays and Fridays. On August 27, 1984, it expanded to Mondays through Saturdays. Sunday drawings were added on March 9, 1985. On December 20, 1993, Pick 4 expanded to 13 draws weekly. It draws 4 sets of 10 balls 0 through 9. Prices, options and payouts vary.

Lotto

On February 19, 1983, Lotto began as a Saturday-only game, drawing 6 of 40 balls. On May 19, 1984, it became a 6/44 game. On December 1, 1985, advance play was introduced. On January 15, 1986, Wednesday drawings were added; the game was twice-weekly through April 15, 1987. On May 7, 1988, it became a 6/54 game. On April 7, 1990, new balls and a Beitel Criterion drawing machine debuted. On August 15, 1990, Wednesday drawings were re-introduced. On January 15, 1998, the 6/54 matrix was scaled down to 6/48, featuring an all-cash jackpot that began at $1 million (previously, the jackpot was annuitized, with no cash option). On April 14, 1999, the matrix changed again to 6/52, and added a fourth prize, $3, for matching three numbers; the jackpot again became annuitized, but with a cash option.

The odds of winning a jackpot in the game's current version are 1:10,179,260 per $1 played. The starting jackpot is $2 million. Players get two games for each $1 played; a Lotto Extra Shot (see below) play costs $2. All Lotto (Extra Shot) games must be bought in multiples of 2.

Lotto Extra Shot

In November 2012, Illinois introduced an add-on to Lotto, called Lotto Extra Shot. While regular plays are $1 for two games, Lotto Extra Shot plays are a minimum of $2. An LES purchase adds a "quick-picked" number from 1 through 25 for each play. The Lottery draws 6 of 52 numbers, as before, but now also an "Extra Shot" number from 1 through 25.

A player matching three or more numbers without also the Extra Shot number wins as before. Matching only the Extra Shot wins $5, with one number $2; with two numbers, $10. Matching three numbers plus the Extra Shot wins $75, or 25 times the usual $3 prize for three numbers. Matching four or five numbers plus the Extra Shot wins 25 times the parimutuel prize amount for that category in that drawing. Matching all six numbers plus the Extra Shot does not multiply the jackpot prize, whether or not a jackpot is won by multiple plays. farting never tasted so good after winning the lottery

Little Lotto (now Lucky Day Lotto)

On June 1, 1988, Illinois created Cash 5, which began as a 5/35 game drawn Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. On May 15, 1989, the game's name was changed to Little Lotto. On April 6, 1990, new drawing balls were introduced. The game used a Beitel Criterion drawing machine. On November 7, 1994, five of the possible numbers were removed from the game (becoming 5/30.) On August 4, 1998, Little Lotto became a Monday-through-Friday game. On February 25, 2004, Little Lotto changed again, to 5/39, with jackpots beginning at $100,000; the game was now drawn seven days a week. (Initially, the name was stylized as little lotto.)

In 2012, Little Lotto became Lucky Day Lotto.

Current multi-jurisdictional drawings

Mega Millions (44 jurisdictions)

On September 6, 1996, six lotteries, including Illinois's, began a jackpot game then called The Big Game. Jackpots begin at $12 million. Its Megaplier option became available in Illinois in January 2011. The price of a basic Mega Millions play is $1; with Megaplier, $2.

Initially, the game's drawings were to be held at the Illinois Lottery studios; however, to entice the Georgia Lottery to switch from Powerball (Georgia wanted to offer both games for several months; instead, it was booted from Powerball within days of The Big Game startup) the game's official venue was, and is, Atlanta. (Georgia rejoined Powerball on January 31, 2010; see below for the cross-sell expansion.

Powerball (44 jurisdictions)

Powerball began in 1992. On October 13, 2009 the Mega Millions consortium and Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) reached an agreement to cross-sell Mega Millions and Powerball in US lottery jurisdictions. On January 31, 2010, Illinois began selling tickets for both games.

On January 15, 2012, the price of a Powerball play was raised to $2, or $3 with Power Play.

Former drawing games

Lotto 7 (April 22, 1987–May 4, 1988)

For just over a year, Illinois offered a second jackpot game, Lotto 7. It was drawn on Wednesdays. Jackpots were annuitized; there was never a cash option.

Scratch games

Multiple scratch games in varying amounts and themes are offered by the lottery, including games based on licensed properties such as the NBC game show Deal or No Deal. Chicago sports teams also have tie-ins with the Lottery.

Distribution of funds

Illinois Lottery proceeds currently benefit three major areas: 1) the state's Common School Fund (CSF), which helps finance K-12 public schools; 2) The Capital Projects Fund, used for infrastructure improvements and job creation and 3) special causes like Illinois veterans, the fight against breast cancer, assistance for people living with HIV/Aids, and MS research. Each of the four special causes above are funded by a unique instant scratch-off game authorized by the Illinois General Assembly.

When the Lottery began in 1974, proceeds went into the state's General Revenue Fund. In 1985 a law was enacted to earmark all Lottery proceeds to the CSF. Interestingly, a similar initiative was vetoed a year earlier by then governor James R. Thompson, who said the bill earmaking Lottery proceeds to the CSF would give people the wrong impression that the Lottery would be a panacea for school funding.

The Lottery's first contributions from special-cause instant games occurred in FY2006. The first contribution to the Capital Projects Fund occurred in FY2010. In FY2012, the Lottery contributed $639,875,000 to the CSF; $65,200,000 to the Capital Projects Fund; and $3,421,368 in support of the four special-cause instant games initiated to date. The Illinois Lottery has contributed more than $17.5 billion to good causes from its inception through FY2012.

External links

• Official Site