If giving lottery tickets as gifts this holiday season, please remember the lottery is not a kid’s game. That’s the message the N.C. Education Lottery and the N.C. Problem Gambling Program are asking the public to help share this holiday season.

“As we know from talking with lottery winners, many folks in our state give lottery tickets as gifts during the holiday season,” said Mark Michalko, executive director of the N.C. Education Lottery. “We want to keep that tradition alive, but also prevent lottery tickets from ending up in the hands of minors. We encourage the public to join us in helping to remind folks that lottery games are not for children under 18.”

The lottery and the N.C. Problem Gambling Program are joining more than 100 lotteries and organizations around the world in an annual holiday prevention campaign – Gift Responsibly 2022 – organized by the National Council on Problem Gambling and the International Center for Youth Gambling and High-Risk Behaviors.

"Youth problem gambling has emerged as a significant and growing public health issue,” said Keith Whyte, the council’s executive director. We applaud North Carolina’s commitment to raising awareness about risks of youth gambling through the Gift Responsibly Campaign. Our message is a simple one: lottery tickets are never appropriate gifts for children."

To help raise awareness, the lottery shares ‘gift smart’ messaging” on social media posts, on point-of-sale and multi-media monitors in stores that sell lottery tickets, in a media release, and on its popular website, nclottery.com.

The lottery encourages the public to Play Smart ™ as part of commitments made when becoming one of the most responsible lotteries in the world. This accreditation from the World Lottery Association attests that the lottery has implemented responsible gaming practices into its day-to-day operations and is committed to continuous improvement of them. This is the second time the lottery has achieved this designation.

Besides supporting the holiday campaign, the lottery takes steps year-round to prevent those under 18 from playing. They include:

•Printing “You Must Be 18 Years of Age To Play” reminders on tickets and advertising and marketing materials.
•Requiring scans of drivers’ licenses before accessing lottery vending machines.
•Training lottery retailers to check IDs before selling lottery tickets.
•Enforcing the no sales to a minor law in a partnership with state law enforcement agencies.
•Providing $1 million a year to support the N.C. Problem Gambling Program, which provides an evidence-based gambling prevention program to middle school and high school students in the state.

For more information on the campaign, visit https://www.ncpgambling.org/programs-resources/gift-responsibly-campaign/ . If you or someone you care about has a problem with gambling, visit morethanagame.nc.gov.