New Jersey Lottery Extends Billion-Dollar Pension Contributions to Nine Straight Years

The New Jersey Lottery reported a $1.01 billion contribution to the state pension fund for fiscal year 2026, extending its run of annual contributions above $1 billion to nine consecutive years.

The unaudited results, announced July 16, cover the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2026. The Lottery reported $3.49 billion in sales during the period, a 4.6 percent increase from the prior fiscal year.

Players received $2.1 billion in prizes during FY2026. The results place the pension-fund contribution alongside the Lottery’s broader sales performance and its continued operation across several game categories, including Scratch-Offs, Pick-3 with Fireball, Pick-4 with Fireball, Powerball and Mega Millions.

Scratch-Off games remained the New Jersey Lottery’s largest product category, generating $1.9 billion in sales during the fiscal year. The category accounted for more than half of the Lottery’s reported sales, based on the figures released for FY2026.

Powerball sales reached $315.9 million, an 89.4 percent increase from the prior year. That growth moved Powerball ahead of Pick-4 sales for the first time, according to the New Jersey Lottery’s fiscal-year results.

The Lottery also described ongoing efforts to develop its games, marketing and player-engagement strategy through its Northstar New Jersey Lottery partnership. Those initiatives were presented as part of the organization’s approach to innovation in game design and how it engages players.

The FY2026 contribution marks the ninth straight year in which the New Jersey Lottery has provided more than $1 billion to the state pension fund. If that pattern continues for another fiscal year, the Lottery would reach a decade of annual contributions above that threshold.

For readers tracking the multistate game mentioned in the results, current draw information is available through the latest Powerball results.