Lottery is a game in which people pay to purchase tickets for the chance to win money by matching a set of numbers drawn randomly by machines. The games are a form of gambling and a popular method of raising money for public purposes. They have a long history, with the casting of lots to decide fates and property rights being recorded as early as the Bible. In the modern sense, lotteries are state-sponsored games of chance where prizes, such as cash and goods, are awarded to those who match a set of numbers. They are often viewed as an alternative to more direct and regressive forms of taxation, as they do not generally disproportionately burden low-income groups.

Governments at all levels use lotteries to raise funds for a variety of public purposes, including highway construction and repair, school construction, and a number of social safety-net programs. Some state governments even operate a monopoly on lottery operations, while others license private firms to conduct the games. The evolution of state lotteries is a classic example of policy decisions being made piecemeal and incrementally, and the ongoing development of the industry often drives those policies. The general desirability of the lottery as a means of raising funds is not generally in question, but the specific features of its operations are debated vigorously.

For example, the debates over state lotteries often center on whether they are a source of compulsive gambling and the regressive impact they have on lower-income groups. The fact is, however, that few, if any, states have a coherent “lottery policy” that would take those and other issues into consideration.