California State Lottery 2022 – A year for the history books

This past year – 2022 – will go down as one of the most significant years in California State Lottery (CSL) history. Believe it or not, the Powerball® jackpot experience that unfolded in Southern California is just part of this year’s transformative story.

Record-breaking Powerball Prize
Yes, the eyes of the world centered on Altadena (Los Angeles County) in early November after one ticket out of millions sold across the country matched all five numbers, plus the Powerball number, to win $2.04 billion. That’s a world record amount!

Joe Chahayed, owner of Joe’s Service Center, also scored the maximum bonus of $1 million from the Lottery for selling that winning ticket – a story shared hundreds of times worldwide.

But the bigger story is the amount of money over the 41 draws that Powerball ticket sales in our state raised for public schools – $156.3 million! That also set a record for California for a draw sequence.

With staggering figures like this, it is easy to forget the millions in other money raised and won.

Other Premium Paydays

The big wins actually started in early January. This table highlights other premium paydays this year.

Through the end of November, the California Lottery had already created 125 new millionaires (and one billionaire) in both draw and Scratchers games, producing quite a few memorable moments.

Spectacular Scratchers® and Memorable Moments 

Who can forget the woman who bought a ticket she didn’t even want after someone bumped into her and caused her to push the wrong button on a Lottery vending machine in Tarzana (Los Angeles County)? It was meant to be. She won $10 million on that 200X Scratchers!
Then there’s the man who chose a bright orange Instant Prize Crossword Scratchers at a store in South San Francisco simply because it matched the color of his wife’s Leukemia awareness bracelet. Thinking of her at that moment landed this family $2 million!

Another man won $1 million while on a gas run in Vista (San Diego County).

One guy won $20 million while out shopping for shorts and beer in Auburn (Placer County). The game he played is notable because the new Set for Life Millionaire Edition ticket, which debuted in February, features the largest cash prize the California Lottery has ever offered for a Scratchers game. 

Accomplishing the Mission
The Lottery operates on a fiscal year calendar which runs from July 1 through June 30 the following year. As we close out 2022, we are reminded of this press release highlighting record earnings for public education!

In Fiscal Year (FY) 2020-21, the Lottery achieved record-setting sales of more than $8.4 billion. That also translated to a record total of more than $1.88 billion for California public schools. Announcements like this tend to lag a little bit because the numbers must be audited – a careful and lengthy process.

We hope to have the numbers for FY 2021-22 soon and will proudly share those when the audit is completed. At present we are looking at projected estimated sales of more than $8.8 billion, translating into even more for public education!

Distinctive Awards
The California Lottery received two awards for financial reporting this year, including the highly regarded Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of the U.S. and Canada. You can view our most recent financial reports here.

California Lottery’s Marketing team recently claimed three international advertising awards from the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (NASPL). Effective advertising serves to elevate the California Lottery brand as an entertainment option for players and further propels the Lottery’s mission to generate money for California public education.

New Tools Promote Public Awareness
In June, the California Lottery unveiled a new interactive tool on its website that lets you see how much Lottery funding goes to schools by county and by school district.

The Lottery is also visiting public schools to produce videos demonstrating how individual campuses use their Lottery dollars.

Lottery is also looking out for the public by warning them about potential scams, raising awareness about responsible gifting, how to avoid problem gambling and where to seek help if needed.

Happy New Year!
The California Lottery is well poised to welcome in the New Year. The department is unique in that we rely on ticket sales – and not public funds – to operate. In 2023, the California Lottery is committed to building upon the things that amplify who we are as a public agency and demonstrate measurable results as they relate to our mission – raising money for public schools, kindergarten through the university level.