State Specific Rules
Playing Powerball in Kansas is simply a case of picking up a playslip from any licensed retailer and choosing five main numbers between 1 and 69, plus a Powerball from 1 to 26. Alternatively, you can ask the retailer for a Quick Pick or mark the ‘QP’ option on your slip to be given a line of random numbers. The following state-specific rules should also be taken into consideration:
- You must be at least 18 years of age to buy lottery tickets or claim prizes.
- You can play up to 15 consecutive draws in advance by marking the appropriate ‘Multi-Draw’ option on your playslip.
- The Kansas Lottery does not prohibit the purchase of Powerball tickets using debit and credit cards, but individual retailers may refuse to accept these payment methods according to their own policies.
- For prizes over $5,000, the Kansas Lottery will withhold a state tax of five percent, in addition to any federal taxes.
How to Claim Prizes
Prizes up to $599 can be claimed from any lottery retailer in Kansas, or at the lottery’s headquarters in Topeka. Some stores may not have enough cash on hand to pay the money out, in which case you may need to visit a different retailer to receive your money.
For prizes over $599, you must complete a claim form and present it along with the winning ticket at the lottery’s headquarters at the following address:
Kansas Lottery Headquarters
128 N Kansas Avenue,
Topeka, KS 66603
Amounts up to $5,000 will be paid out by check the same day, but prize claims of more than this may take 7-10 days to be processed. Payments will be made by check or by electronic deposit into your bank account, according to your preference. For an electronic deposit, you will need to contact the Kansas Lottery Finance Department on 785-296-5734 to obtain a direct deposit form.
Alternatively, you can mail your winning ticket and completed claim form to the address above. You can choose to have your winnings sent via check in the mail, or arrange to pick up a check at a later date, or you can have the money transferred to your bank account by direct deposit.
Claiming With a Lottery Pool
The Kansas Lottery will only pay prizes out to a single claimant. If you are part of a lottery pool, you must designate one person to claim prizes on behalf of the group, and all other members must complete a ‘Multi-Winners Form’. Each member will be asked to provide their name, address, and social security number, as well as how much of the prize they are entitled to.
Claim Period
You have one year from the drawing date to claim a prize. Any money left unclaimed after this period will remain in the prize fund and will go towards future prizes.
Lost and Damaged Tickets
Lottery tickets are bearer instruments, so whoever is in possession of a winning ticket can claim the prize. You should therefore sign and print your name on the back of your ticket as soon as you have bought it. If it is then lost or stolen, it will be easier to prove that you are the rightful owner if anyone else attempts to claim a prize with it. Prizes may not be paid out if a ticket is too damaged to be validated.
Going Public
Kansas is one of the states that allows lottery winners to remain anonymous. You can therefore request that no information about you is released in the event of a big Powerball win. You can still disclose your identity to the public if you wish to do so.
Where Does the Money Go?
Over half of the Kansas Lottery’s revenue goes towards paying out prizes, and it has awarded over $3 billion to players since it was established in 1987. Of the remaining revenue, a large proportion is transferred to the state to fund public initiatives ranging from prison construction to problem gambling, and some is used to cover costs and retailer commissions.
| Area of Spending | Percentage of Revenue |
|---|---|
| Prizes | 61.4% |
| Transfers to State | 24.3% |
| Retailer Commissions | 5.9% |
| Administrative Costs | 4.5% |
| Game Costs | 3.9% |
To date, the lottery has transferred over $1.8 billion to the State Gaming Revenues Fund (SGRF) to support public programs and initiatives. Each year, $50 million is split between several separate entities: the Problem Gambling and Addictions Fund; the Economic Development Initiatives Fund; the Correctional Institutions Building Fund; and the Juvenile Detention Facilities Fund. Any remaining money over the $50 million is transferred to the state’s General Fund.
The Economic Development Initiatives Fund (EDIF) is the most wide-ranging of these entities, and previous funding has been used to support a range of projects, from the Strong Military Bases program to the State Housing Trust Fund. The arts and education sectors also benefit, and EDIF money is used to invest heavily in vocational education.
Kansas Powerball Winners
Donald Damon is the biggest ever Powerball winner from the Sunflower State. The 70-year-old resident of Great Bend, Barton County, hit a jackpot worth $96 million shortly after he retired from his job as a truck driver. Damon had his daughter, Karen, to thank for finding out about the win, as she checked his numbers after hearing that someone from Kansas had landed the jackpot. “I can’t believe it”, he said. “That’s a lot of money. Most of the time it’s nothing. I’m just getting some of my money back.” He said he planned to donate some of the money to local churches and take his family traveling.
Back in 2000, a group of 26 co-workers from American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma, won a share of a $150 million jackpot – the biggest ever to have been seen in Kansas at the time – with two other tickets. Although they worked across the border, the group dispatched Marco Enriquez to Casey, Kansas, once a month to purchase a bunch of Powerball tickets, as that was the closest place to buy them at the time. They had been playing the lottery for two years, and some were getting tired of not winning before they landed their windfall. They opted to take a cash lump sum that worked out at around $668,000 each after taxes.
