Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 961 CMR - STATE LOTTERY COMMISSION › Title 961 CMR 2.00 - Rules and Regulations › Section 2.63 - Multi-state Game - POWERBALL

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
(1)
Effective Date
. Beginning October 4, 2015, the
			 following shall be in effect.
(2)
Definitions
. The following definitions apply unless
			 the context requires a different meaning or is otherwise inconsistent with the
			 intention of the rules adopted by the Product Group.
Advertised Grand Prize
shall mean the
				estimated annuitized Grand Prize amount as determined by the MUSL central
				office by use of the MUSL Annuity Factor and communicated through the Selling
				Lotteries prior to the Grand Prize drawing. The Advertised Grand Prize is not a
				guaranteed prize amount and the actual Grand Prize amount may vary from the
				advertised amount, except in circumstances where there is a guaranteed Grand
				Prize amount as described in 961 CMR 2.63(6)(e).
Agent or Retailer
means a person or
				entity authorized by a Selling Lottery to sell lottery plays.
Computer Pick
, also known as
Quic Pic
, means the random selection of indicia by the
				computer that appear on a ticket or ticketless transaction and are played by a
				player in the game.
Drawing
refers collectively to the
				formal draw event for randomly selecting the winning indicia that determine the
				number of winners for each prize level of the Powerball game and the Power Play
				multiplier. Winning indicia include the Winning Numbers for the Powerball game,
				and the Power Play multiplier.
Game Board
or
Boards
means that area of the Play Slip, also known as
				a panel, that contains sets of numbered squares to be marked by the
				player.
Game Ticket
or
Ticket
means an acceptable evidence of play, which is
				a ticket produced in a manner that meets the specifications defined in the
				rules of each Selling Lottery and 961 CMR 2.63(7) and is a physical
				representation of the play or plays sold to the player or is a properly and
				validly registered ticketless transaction play.
Grand Prize
shall refer to the top
				prize in the Powerball game.
Licensee Lottery
shall mean a state
				lottery or lottery of a governmental unit, political subdivision, or entity
				thereof that is not a Party Lottery but has agreed to comply with all
				applicable MUSL and Product Group requirements and has been authorized by the
				MUSL and by the Powerball Product Group to sell the Powerball game.
MUSL
means the Multi-state Lottery
				Association, a government-benefit association wholly owned and operated by the
				Party Lotteries.
MUSL Annuity Factor
shall mean the
				annuity factor as determined by the MUSL central office through a method
				approved by the MUSL Finance and Audit Committee and which is used as described
				in 961 CMR 2.63.
MUSL Board
means the governing body of
				the MUSL, which is comprised of the chief executive officer of each Party
				Lottery.
Party Lottery
or
Member
				Lottery
means a state lottery or lottery of a political
				subdivision or entity that has joined the MUSL and, in the context of the
				Product Group Rules, that is authorized to sell the Powerball game. Unless
				otherwise indicated, Party Lottery or Member Lottery does not include Licensee
				Lotteries.
Play
or
Bet
means the six numbers, the first five from a field of 69 numbers and the last
				one from a field of 26 numbers, that appear on a ticket or communicated in a
				ticketless transaction as a single lettered selection and are to be played by a
				player in the Powerball game.
Product Group
or the
Group
means a group of lotteries that has joined
				together to offer a product pursuant to the terms of the Multi-state Lottery
				Agreement and the Product Group's own rules.
Play Slip
or
Bet
				Slip
means a card used in marking a player's game plays and
				containing one or more boards.
Selling Lottery
shall mean a lottery
				authorized by the Product Group to sell Powerball plays, including Party
				Lotteries and Licensee Lotteries.
Set Prize
, also referred to as
				low-tier prize, means all other prizes, except the Grand Prize, and, except in
				instances outlined in 961 CMR 2.63, will be equal to the prize amount
				established by the MUSL Board for the prize level.
Terminal
means a device authorized by
				a Selling Lottery to function in an on-line, interactive mode with the gaming
				computer system for the purpose of issuing lottery tickets and entering,
				receiving, and processing lottery transactions, including making purchases,
				validating tickets, and transmitting reports.
Ticketless Transaction
shall include
				plays sold through subscription, internet, or non-standard terminals.
Winning Numbers
means the indicia
				randomly selected during a Drawing event which shall be used to determine
				winning plays for the Powerball game contained on a game ticket or ticketless
				transaction.
(3)
Game Description
.
(a) Powerball is a five out of 69 plus one
			 out of 26 numbers lottery game drawn every Wednesday and Saturday, and
			 effective August 23, 2021, or such other date as set by the Product Group
			 Rules, will be drawn every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday as part of the
			 Powerball drawing event, which pays the Grand Prize, at the election of the
			 player made in accordance with 961 CMR 2.63 or by a default election either on
			 an annuitized pari-mutuel basis or as a single lump sum payment of the total
			 funding held in the Grand Prize Pool for the winning drawing on a pari-mutuel
			 basis. Except as provided in 961 CMR 2.63, all other prizes are paid on a
			 single payment basis. Powerball Winning Numbers applicable to determine
			 Powerball prizes will be determined in the Powerball Drawing event.
To play Powerball, a player shall select (or computer pick)
				five different numbers, from one through 69 and one additional number from one
				through 26. The additional number may be the same as one of the first five
				numbers selected by the player. Plays can be purchased for $2.00, including any
				specific statutorily mandated tax of a Selling Lottery to be included in the
				price of a play. Plays may be purchased from a Selling Lottery approved sales
				outlet in a manner as approved by the Selling Lottery and in accordance with
				MUSL Rules.
The Drawing Procedures shall include procedures for randomly
				selecting the Powerball game Winning Numbers and the Power Play
				multiplier.
(b)
Claims
. Unless otherwise permitted by a selling
			 lottery, a ticket (subject to the validation requirements set forth in 961 CMR
			 2.63(7)) or properly registered ticketless transaction shall be the only proof
			 of a game Play or Plays and the submission of a winning ticket to the issuing
			 Selling Lottery or its authorized agent shall be the sole method of claiming a
			 prize or prizes. A Play Slip has no pecuniary or prize value and shall not
			 constitute evidence of play purchase or of numbers selected. A
			 terminal-produced paper receipt has no pecuniary or prize value and shall not
			 constitute evidence of play purchase or of numbers selected.
(c)
Cancellations
			 Prohibited
. A play may not be voided or canceled by returning the
			 ticket or ticketless transaction to the selling agent or to the lottery,
			 including tickets that are printed in error. A Selling Lottery may develop an
			 approved method of compensating retailers for plays that are not transferred to
			 a player for a reason acceptable to the Selling Lottery. No play that is
			 eligible for a prize can be returned to the lottery for credit. Plays accepted
			 by retailers as returned plays and that cannot be resold shall be deemed owned
			 by the bearer thereof.
(d)
Player Responsibility
. It shall be the sole
			 responsibility of the player to verify the accuracy of the game Play or Plays
			 and other data printed on the ticket or contained in a ticketless transaction.
			 The placing of Plays is done at the player's own risk through the agent that is
			 acting on behalf of the player in entering the Play or Plays. The purchaser of
			 a Play or Plays through a ticketless transaction has the sole responsibility
			 for verifying the accuracy and condition of the data at the time of
			 purchase.
(e)
Entry of
			 Plays
. Plays may only be entered manually using the lottery
			 terminal keypad or touch screen or by means of a Play Slip provided by the
			 Selling Lottery and hand-marked by the player or by such other means approved
			 by the Selling Lottery. Retailers shall not permit the use of facsimiles of
			 Play Slips, copies of Play Slips, or other materials that are inserted into the
			 terminal's Play Slip reader that are not printed or approved by the Selling
			 Lottery. Retailers shall not permit any device to be connected to a lottery
			 terminal to enter plays, except as approved by the Selling Lottery.
(f)
Registration of
			 Plays
. Ticketless transaction plays may be registered by the
			 Selling Lottery at a lottery processing site that meets the requirements
			 established by the Product Group and the MUSL Board.