As part of the New York State Gaming Commission,[1] it provides revenue for public education and is based in Schenectady.

Players must be at least 18 (including video lottery); however, the minimum is 21 for Quick Draw (a keno game drawn four minutes apart) where alcohol is served.

New York City and Yonkers residents also are subject to local income taxes.

On November 8, 1966, New Yorkers voted to approve a constitutional amendment authorizing a government-run lottery.

New York governor Hugh Carey suspended sales for about nine months in 1975-76 due to a scandal involving unsold tickets being selected as winners.

[3] Another scandal in 1986 involved state employees manipulating mail-in tickets in a mail room to result in over $40,000 in winning to friends and family.

Take 5 began in 1992 as a Friday-only game, then called Take Five; it has since expanded gradually to nightly drawings beginning in 2000.

As the payout percentage in Lotto is a statutory 40%, sales of the game have been in a years-long decline, especially since the addition of Mega Millions(in 2002) and Powerball(in 2010) to the Lottery's portfolio, and the expansion of Cash4Life to nightly drawings; of these three only Mega Millions is not drawn the same nights as Lotto.

In September 2019, the minimum rollover was reduced to $100,000 in part due to poor sales.

It is played at a limited number of Lottery retailers with a monitor showing the drawings; many of these establishments serve alcoholic beverages.

The minimum age for playing Quick Draw is 21 where alcohol is served, while it is 18 elsewhere, including liquor stores.

Cash4Life drawings are held live nightly (formerly Monday and Thursday evenings) at 9pm Eastern Time on Livestream.

The Megaplier (a multiplier of 2, 3, 4, or 5), initially a Texas-only option, eventually became available in all MM jurisdictions, except in California.

Mega Millions is offered in 44 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

New York joined Powerball (offered in 46 jurisdictions) on January 31, 2010, after a cross-sell agreement allowed the game to be sold alongside Mega Millions.

The New York Lottery was among 22 states and the District of Columbia to launch Monopoly Millionaires' Club (MMC) on October 19, 2014.

A television game show was produced for MMC players who won a trip to Las Vegas.

MMC scratchcard players also are eligible to appear on the game show, hosted by Billy Gardell.

A game briefly available in the late 1990s where players tried to pick the date, month, and year of a day in the 20th century.

The game was "marketed" under four different names based on the region the ticket was sold ("Big Apple", "Long Island," "Upstate", and "Western New York").

Available at nine parimutuel facilities: New York video lottery, by law, offers a 92% minimum payout percentage.