Good Question: Why do national lottery tickets have state names on them?

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Nancy asks: “Why does the lottery have state names on it when it is actually all states, not solely for a single state?”

When someone buys a Powerball ticket in Kentucky, they are not buying it from the company that runs Powerball. Each state that takes part has its own entity that administers the lottery there. In Kentucky, that entity is the Kentucky Lottery.

How the Kentucky Lottery is set up

The Kentucky Lottery Corporation was created by the General Assembly in 1988.

Games shared with other states

Some of the games the Kentucky Lottery oversees share ticket sales and prize pools with players in other states. Those include Powerball and Mega Millions. When a ticket is sold in Kentucky, part of the sale goes to the national prize pool, which can be won regardless of where the ticket was purchased.

Games sold only in Kentucky

Tickets for some other games are sold only within Kentucky, and winners have to have bought their tickets in the state. Those games include Kentucky Cash Ball, Pick 3, Pick 4 and all the scratch-off tickets the Kentucky Lottery sells.

States that don’t participate

Some states don’t take part in the lottery, either in national games like Powerball or in state games. That list includes Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah. Most of those states cite religious or cultural reasons. Nevada’s absence is due to pushback from the casino industry.

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