The California State Lottery, also known as the California Lottery, began on November 6, 1984, after California voters passed Proposition 37 , the California State Lottery Act of 1984, authorizing the creation of a lottery . The first tickets were purchased on October 3, 1985. The minimum age to purchase or redeem California Lottery tickets is 18.
Lottery Act
The California State Lottery Act of 1984 was intended to provide more money to schools without imposing extra taxes . Accordingly, the Lottery was required to provide at least 34% of its revenues to public education , supplementing (not replacing) other funds provided by California. Another 50% of its revenues must be paid to the public in the form of prizes , making a mandated minimum of 84% of all funds that must be given back to the public in the form of prizes or funds for public education. The remainder, a maximum of 16%, was to be spent on administration , such as salaries and running the games.
On April 8, 2010, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Assembly Bill 142 (Hayashi, D-Hayward) . Amending the Lottery Act, this bill reallocates Lottery revenues "so as to maximize the amount of funding allocated to public education." As an urgency statute, this bill took effect immediately. The new allocation increased to at least 87% the portion of Lottery revenue returned to the public, and correspondingly decreased to a maximum of 13% the amount spent on administration. It then specified that "not less than 50% of the total annual Lottery revenues, in an amount to be determined by the commission, be returned to the public in the form of prizes." This leaves "the commission to establish the percentage to be allocated to the benefit of public education at a level that maximizes the total net revenues allocated to the benefit of public education." It also imposed requirements "to ensure continued growth in Lottery net revenues allocated to public education", with procedures that led to the reversion of the very changes made by this measure—and restoration of the previous practice—if those requirements were not thenmet. This bill follows the practice of "other large state lottery systems, including Texas, North Carolina, and Florida, which have shown an increase in revenue through similar changes."
The Lottery Act mandates a commission, appointed by the Governor , to operate and administer the lottery, and a pari-mutuel system to determine the size of each prize, such that prize values are not fixed, but depend on sales and the number of winning tickets. The Lottery does set fixed prize levels for its Hot Spot game (see below.)
History
The California State Lottery began on November 6, 1984, when a majority (58%) of California voters passed Proposition 37 , the California State Lottery Act of 1984, authorizing the creation of a lottery. On January 29, 1985, Gov. George Deukmejian appointed the first Lottery commissioners: William Johnston, Laverta Montgomery, John Price, Howard Varner, and Kennard Webster. Deukmejian appointed the first director, Mark Michalko, formerly Ohio Lottery legal counsel, in May 1985. The first lottery games were Scratchers; sales began on October 3, 1985. A weekly Lotto game began on October 14, 1986.
California joined Mega Millions on June 22, 2005, becoming the 12th jurisdiction to join the game. A Mega Millions drawing was held in Hollywood to commemorate the event.
California, while initially never desiring to offer Mega Millions's rival Powerball , was briefly a member of the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) because an "international" lottery game that would have included a number of US lotteries was planned; however, the game never came into fruition.
Games
Make Me a Millionaire
Make Me a Millionaire is the California Lottery's second TV game show . It succeeded the previous show when it debuted for an initial four-year run on January 17, 2009, with host Mark L. Walberg and co-presenter Liz Hernandez. On May 4, 2010, the California Lottery announced that the show has been canceled due to poor ratings; the last program will be telecast on July 3.[dated info ] The show will not be replaced; money that was allocated for its production will be used for prizes for the lottery's Scratchers games. Future winners of the "Make Me a Millionaire" Scratchers games, which were sold until June 30, 2010,[dated info ] will still have the opportunity to play the games and win prizes off the air after production of the TV show has ended.
Each of the 12 contestants wins at least $2,000; seven of the contestants are selected randomly to play games of chance with a top prize that begins at $1 million, increasing by $200,000 each week until won. Players qualify for the Make Me a Millionaire show by winning in the "Make Me a Millionaire" Scratchers game, or by a Fantasy 5 second-chance drawing; when the show began, winners from "Big Spin" Scratchers also qualified.
Make Me A Millionaire's first game is Lucky Penny, which offers to three players a minimum prize of $2,000; one wins a car. The second game is Safe Cracker, in which two players compete for prizes ranging from $2,000 to $92,000. Next is California Cool, with one player and prizes ranging from $5,000 to $200,000. The last game is Millionaire, also for one player; it guarantees $10,000 with a jackpot of at least $1 million.
The Big Spin was the California Lottery's first game show; the final episode, broadcast on January 10, 2009, ended its run as the longest-running lottery game show in the US. The Lottery had several methods for choosing contestants, including prizes in Scratchers games and "second-chance" drawings from other games. The top prize was fixed at $3 million; the minimum guaranteed prize was $1,750. While Big Spin Scratchers remained in circulation in 2009, winners who would previously have spun the wheel on The Big Spin had the option to spin the wheel--untelevised--as an alternative to going to the Make Me a Millionaire show.
Scratchers
Scratchers are scratch tickets --also called "instant" games. A player scratches off a thin film from the ticket to see if the ticket is a winner. The prizes are smaller than other lottery games, but there are better odds (averaging 1:5). There are dozens of Scratchers games on sale at any time, and the selection of games changes frequently. Winners must be claimed within 180 days of the announced end-of-game date.
Scratchers range in price from $1 to $5, with higher-priced tickets typically putting a higher percentage of sales into prizes. The payout percentages for each price point are as follows:
| $1 | $2 | $3 | $5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 53% | 55.8% | 60% | 64% |
Other games
In these games, players purchase tickets in advance, and winners are chosen by random number generator (except for Mega Millions and Super Lotto Plus) at specified draw times.
Daily 3
Playing Daily 3 involves picking three digits 0 through 9 and a playstyle. Bettors can choose Quick Pick to have the numbers picked randomly by computer. The playstyle choices are straight (this is the default if the player doesn't choose one), box, or straight/box. The game costs $1 per play, per draw, and the Advance Play option allows up to 14 consecutive draws. There are two draws every day, televised at 1:29pm and 6:59pm.
Daily 4
A "pick 4" type game premiered on May 19, 2008. Each play costs $1 and drawings are held once per day. Playstyles, like the Daily 3, offer the straight, box, and straight/box option.
Daily Derby
Daily Derby is a mock horse racing game. Players choose three horses, one each to finish first (win), second (place) and third (show); players also choose a race time from 1:40:00 to 1:49:99, by marking the last three digits of the time on the playslip. Alternately, players can select Quick Pick to have the computer choose the horses, the race time, or both. Daily Derby also offers Advance Play for up to 14 consecutive draws. The game costs $2 per play, per draw; held daily at 6:35pm and televised at 6:59pm.
Fantasy 5
Fantasy 5 players choose five numbers from 1 through 39. A ticket includes up to five sets of numbers; they can be played up to 12 drawings. Games cost $1 per play. Fantasy 5 is drawn evenings at 6:35pm and televised at 6:59pm. Jackpots begin at $50,000.
A player who buys a $5 Fantasy 5 ticket gets a coupon to mail in for a "second-chance" draw. Winners of this random draw become contestants on the Make Me a Millionaire show.
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