Nebraska Lottery
The Nebraska Lottery is run by the government of Nebraska. It was established by the state legislature in 1993. It is a member of the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). Its games include Mega Millions, Powerball, 2by2, Nebraska Pick 5, Pick 3, and MyDaY.
Unique to Nebraska are municipal lotteries, which predate the Nebraska Lottery itself. These are keno games, which are not part of the Lottery.
The minimum age to buy tickets has always been 19. Elsewhere, the minimum is 18 or 21.
Except for Powerball, whose winning numbers are drawn with numbered balls in Tallahassee, Florida (and Mega Millions in Atlanta, Georgia), Lottery games are drawn by a random number generator (RNG). (Mega Millions uses an RNG to determine its Megaplier.)
Draw games
Multi-jurisdictional games
2by2
2by2, also played in Kansas and North Dakota, is drawn nightly. Two red numbers and two white numbers (each 1 through 26) are drawn. Games are $1; there are seven ways to win. Matching all four numbers wins $22,000; it is doubled if won on a Tuesday, and the ticket was bought for seven consecutive draws.
Mega Millions
In 1996, six lotteries began The Big Game; it became Mega Millions in 2002. In January 2010, Mega Millions and Powerball became available to lotteries which had either game. Mega Millions became available in Nebraska on March 20, 2010.
Mega Millions is drawn Tuesdays and Fridays; its jackpots begin at $12 million.
Powerball
Nebraska joined Powerball in 1994. Powerball jackpots begin at $40 million; it is drawn Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The largest lottery prize in American history for one set of numbers was on a Nebraska ticket for Powerball in a 2006 drawing. The entire $365 million was shared by eight people, who chose the cash option.
In-house games
Pick 3
Pick 3, begun in 2004, is drawn daily except Sundays. Play styles and prizes vary.
MyDay
MyDay also has six weekly draws. Players pick a number representing a month, a number 1 through 28, 29, 30, or 31 for a day in that month, and the last two digits of a year. Games are $1 each; top prize is $5,000.
Nebraska Pick 5
Nebraska Pick 5 also has six weekly draws. It draws five numbers 1 through 38. Each play is $1. Its jackpot begins at $50,000.
Former games
Nebraska was part of the MUSL game Wild Card when it began in 1998. The game's format changed in May 1999, becoming Wild Card 2; simultaneously, Nebraska pulled out. (Wild Card 2 remains available in Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota.)