9-607. Lottery, defined; manner of play; designation.

(1) Lottery shall mean a gambling scheme in which:

(a) The players pay or agree to pay something of value for an opportunity to win;

(b) Winning opportunities are represented by tickets;

(c) Winners are solely determined by one of the following two methods:

(i) By a random drawing of tickets differentiated by sequential enumeration from a receptacle by hand whereby each ticket has an equal chance of being chosen in the drawing; or

(ii) By use of a game known as keno in which a player selects up to twenty numbers from a total of eighty numbers on a ticket and a computer, other electronic selection device, or electrically operated blower machine which is not player-activated randomly selects up to twenty numbers from the same pool of eighty numbers and the winning players are determined by the correct matching of the numbers on the ticket selected by the players with the numbers randomly selected by the computer, other electronic selection device, or electrically operated blower machine, except that (A) no keno game shall permit or require player activation of lottery equipment and (B) the random selection of numbers by the computer, other electronic selection device, or electrically operated blower machine shall not occur within five minutes of the completion of the previous selection of random numbers;

(d) The holders of the winning tickets are to receive cash or prizes redeemable for cash. Selection of a winner or winners shall be predicated solely on chance; and

(e) Tickets are issued either (i) on paper or (ii) with the consent of the governing body of the county, city, or village conducting the lottery, digitally to a mobile or other device which, at the time of purchase, is verified to be present at the location of the lottery operator or an authorized sales outlet location as provided in subdivision (3)(b) of section 9-651.01.

(2) Lottery shall not include:

(a) Any gambling scheme which uses any mechanical gaming device, computer gaming device, electronic gaming device, or video gaming device which has the capability of awarding something of value, free games redeemable for something of value, or tickets or stubs redeemable for something of value;

(b) Any activity authorized or regulated under the Nebraska Bingo Act, the Nebraska Lottery and Raffle Act, the Nebraska Pickle Card Lottery Act, the Nebraska Small Lottery and Raffle Act, the State Lottery Act, section 9-701, or Chapter 2, article 12; or

(c) Any activity prohibited under Chapter 28, article 11.

(3) Notwithstanding the requirement in subdivision (1)(c)(ii) of this section that a player select up to twenty numbers, a player may select more than twenty numbers on a ticket when a top or bottom, left or right, edge, or way ticket is played. For a top or bottom ticket, the player shall select all numbers from one through forty or all numbers from forty-one through eighty. For a left or right ticket, the player shall select all numbers ending in one through five or all numbers ending in six through zero. For an edge ticket, the player shall select all of the numbers comprising the outside edge of the ticket. For a way ticket, the player shall select a combination of groups of numbers in multiple ways on a single ticket.

(4) A county, city, or village conducting a keno lottery shall designate the method of winning number selection to be used in the lottery and submit such designation in writing to the department prior to conducting a keno lottery. Only those methods of winning number selection described in subdivision (1)(c)(ii) of this section shall be permitted, and the method of winning number selection initially utilized may only be changed once during that business day as set forth in the designation. A county, city, or village shall not change the method or methods of winning number selection filed with the department or allow it to be changed once such initial designation has been made unless (a) otherwise authorized in writing by the department based upon a written request from the county, city, or village or (b) an emergency arises in which case a ball draw method of number selection would be switched to a number selection by a random number generator. An emergency situation shall be reported by the county, city, or village to the department within twenty-four hours of its occurrence.

Source:Laws 1986, LB 1027, § 178; Laws 1989, LB 767, § 53; Laws 1991, LB 795, § 7; Laws 1991, LB 849, § 56; Laws 1993, LB 563, § 4; Laws 1993, LB 138, § 14; Laws 2011, LB490, § 4; Laws 2023, LB775, § 8.
Effective Date: September 2, 2023

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