Lottery is a form of gambling in which numbers are drawn at random to determine the winners. Traditionally, governments have used the lottery to raise funds for a variety of public purposes, including social welfare programs and public works projects. In the US, state-owned lotteries have become an important source of tax revenue. A number of privately owned lotteries also operate in the US.
Lotteries are often criticized for having a regressive impact on lower-income communities, as well as for promoting addictive gambling habits and for contributing to inequality. However, critics have difficulty arguing that these problems are caused by the inherent nature of the lottery. Instead, they argue that the regressive nature of the lottery results from its design and structure.
The first European lotteries in the modern sense of the word appeared in the 15th century, with towns attempting to raise money for town fortifications or to help the poor. Francis I of France encouraged the establishment of state-controlled lotteries in his kingdom.
In the United States, colonial-era lotteries raised money for a variety of projects, including paving streets and building wharves. Benjamin Franklin sponsored a lottery in 1776 to raise funds for cannons to defend Philadelphia against the British. Lottery play declined in the 19th century, but was revived with the advent of legalized games such as scratch tickets.
State lotteries are often considered a classic example of “piecemeal” public policy: once established, they are hard to change. Lottery officials typically start with a small set of relatively simple games and, as they encounter pressure for additional revenues, progressively expand the offering.