Brian Rockey
Nebraska Lottery
Director
137 NW 17th St.
Lincoln, NE 68528
402-471-6100
FY 2023
FY 2023
Total Sales
$220,129,835
Transfers to Beneficiaries
FY 2023
$55,765,983
Prizes to Players
FY 2023
$128,952,199
Retailers
1,200
History of Nebraska Lottery
In November 1992, 63 percent of Nebraska voters approved a constitutional amendment authorizing a state lottery. Legislation creating the Nebraska Lottery was passed in February 1993, and ticket sales began on September 11 of that year. The first game was Nebraska Match 3, a $1 scratch ticket.
Powerball was the Lottery’s first draw game, with sales beginning in July 1994. It was an immediate success, boosted by having a local jackpot winner just nine days after launch.
The original enabling legislation divided Lottery proceeds between the Education Innovation Fund, the Nebraska Environmental Trust Fund and the Compulsive Gamblers Assistance Fund.
In 2004, voters approved an amendment that established a new distribution formula for lottery beneficiaries:
Education: 44.5 percent, as directed by the legislature; currently distributed to the Nebraska Education Improvement Fund
Nebraska Environmental Trust Fund: 44.5 percent
Nebraska State Fair: 10 percent
Compulsive Gamblers Assistance Fund: 1 percent, plus the first $500,000 in fund proceeds each fiscal year
Media Contact:
Neil Watson
402-471-6120
Total sales include actual sales of traditional lottery products and, where applicable, gross gaming revenues from eInstant lottery games, VLTs, casinos and sports betting.