Lottery is an activity in which a number of tickets are sold for a prize, the winners being chosen by chance. Typically, lottery games are organized by state governments to raise money for public purposes, such as education or highway construction. A similar practice is conducted by private organizations, such as churches or charitable groups. In some cases, the winnings are given away to members of an organization. People also sometimes refer to their jobs or other activities as a lottery, especially when they have an outcome that depends on fate (like combat duty).

Lotteries have been around for centuries. They have been used by the ancient Hebrews to distribute land among the tribes, by the Romans for giving property and slaves to their guests at Saturnalian feasts, and by Benjamin Franklin in 1768 to raise funds to purchase cannons for Philadelphia. The first modern state lotteries were introduced in 1964, with New Hampshire leading the way. Since then, nearly all states have adopted them.

Each state enacts laws to regulate their respective lotteries, and then delegate their administration to a state lottery commission or board. The commission or board oversees the selection and training of lottery retailers, assists them in promoting their games, pays the top prizes and handles all other aspects of the lottery business. Some states require that all lottery sales be made through a retailer, while others offer direct sales to players.

The central argument used to justify state lotteries is that they provide a source of “painless” revenue, with players voluntarily spending their money for the benefit of the state government. However, studies have shown that the popularity of lotteries is often unrelated to a state’s fiscal health, and that politicians rely on them as a substitute for raising taxes or cutting public programs when budget crises arise.