When a lottery jackpot climbs past a billion dollars, the rest of the country lines up for tickets. In Hawaii, nobody can buy one. Here is why, and what islanders do instead.
Hawaii has never had a state lottery, and it does not take part in multistate games such as Powerball or Mega Millions. Selling or buying tickets in the islands is not allowed, so record jackpots are mostly something residents read about in the news.
A small club of states
Only a handful of U.S. states have no lottery. Hawaii is joined by states such as Utah, Nevada and Alaska, each for its own reasons. Nevada is the surprising one: its constitution long prohibited lotteries, so even in casino-filled Las Vegas you cannot buy a Powerball ticket. Visitors chasing a big jackpot famously drive to stores just across the California state line instead.
How islanders get a ticket
- Mainland trips – buying tickets while visiting family in a lottery state is legal there, and many residents do.
- Office pools – friends on the mainland sometimes buy for a group. Rules on sharing winnings vary, and the ticket legally belongs to whoever holds and signs it, so put any arrangement in writing.
- Avoid online offers – websites that "sell" lottery tickets to people in Hawaii are a common route to scams.
Will Hawaii ever get a lottery?
Lottery bills are proposed regularly, often tied to funding for education or housing. Supporters note that islanders already spend money on mainland tickets; opponents argue a lottery takes most from those who can least afford it. As of this writing, none has passed.
The odds, for perspective
The odds of hitting a Powerball jackpot are about 1 in 292 million. A Hawaii beach day costs nothing and pays out every time, which is perhaps the best argument the islands have.
Top photo: Numbered lottery balls in a drawing machine. Photo: elizaIO, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
