Summarize:

Your state may prohibit raffles. Other states place regulations on how many raffles non-profit organizations can conduct per year and the types of prizes that are allowed. Consult your state's laws about raffles or, better yet, talk to an attorney. Avoid prizes that could cause legal problems. Prizes over $600 might draw the attention of the IRS. Also, avoid prizes that are tightly regulated, such as alcohol, tobacco, and firearms. You might get into legal trouble if a disgruntled loser decides to challenge the contest. If the rules are spelled out clearly, you can mitigate some of that liability. Be sure to cite the appropriate provision of your state law in your raffle rules. For example: "This raffle is conducted according to the rules of the state of [your state here] in accordance with [cite the reference to the law here]." Spell out the rules in plain English. For example: "Entrants purchase a ticket which is placed into a box and blindly drawn at random." Use common sense for your raffle rules. Make it clear that your organization has some discretion in handing out prizes. For example, if a ticket is drawn and nobody claims the prize, another ticket can be drawn. State in the rules whether entrants are required to be there in person when the drawing occurs. All raffles promise at least one lucky winner a prize at the end of the drawing. There may be more than one raffle contest prize, or even prize levels (first, second, third, etc.) based on order of the draw. You can get local businesses to donate prizes as a tax write-off. That will save your organization some money. It's a great idea to go to your local shopping mall and talk to managers in each store at the mall to solicit prizes. Gift certificates at popular stores make great prizes. That way, you're giving out a prize but in reality the winner is picking out his or her own prize at the store. Raffle tickets need certain information on them, regardless of your event or organization: You can use your favorite word processor to print the raffle tickets. On one side of the ticket (the stub side), list the following organization/event information: organization name, address and phone number; list of prizes; event name; drawing date and website. On the opposite side of the ticket, provide spaces for participants to fill in their information: participant name, address, phone number, and email address. Tickets may or may not have numbers on them. Some state regulations require numbers, so look into the rules for your particular state before having tickets printed.
Check the local government regulatory agencies to make sure your organization can legally hold a raffle. Define rules for your raffle. Decide on a prize. Print tickets.