Many lottery consortiums fund charities and community programs.

Charity Tickets are sold alongside their chancy brethren. Pay your money and get your Charity Ticket, which serves as the receipt for your tax-deductible donation. The differences between buying a lottery ticket and buying a charity ticket are:

a) the money goes straight to the charity, not being entered into the lottery pot;
b) since "a)", you can write if off of your taxes as a "charitable donation";
c) since "b)", you're more ahead of the game than if you just buy a lottery ticket;
d) the charity receives a greater percentage of your donation.
-- FlyingToaster, Jan 09 2011

Altruistic Lottery Tickets Altruistic_20Lottery_20Tickets
Derivative idea [8th of 7, Jan 10 2011]

To clarify: you are buying a lottery ticket on behalf of the charity, so if the ticket wins, the charity gets the money ?
-- 8th of 7, Jan 09 2011


No, you're simply making a deductible donation to a charity for which you get a receipt. But it's run by the lottery corporations (the ones which proceeds go to charity) and sold alongside the regular tickets. They look very similar to lotto tickets as well.
-- FlyingToaster, Jan 09 2011


Great idea, but how does the lottery company make enough profit?
-- pocmloc, Jan 09 2011


// how does the lottery company make enough profit? //

Oooh, tough one. Maybe they could make use of their licence to print money, or perhaps employ their franchise to tax the stupid ?
-- 8th of 7, Jan 09 2011


The lottery companies concerned are the ones who fund charitable organizations. Consider this a ticket that they don't have to enter into the draw, ie: they have your $5 and you have a $5 deduction on your income tax, which is more than you're going to get from playing the lottery.
-- FlyingToaster, Jan 09 2011


//they have your $5 and you have a $5 deduction on your income tax// Essentially, a bog standard charitable donation, the novel feature being the way it's marketed [+]
-- mouseposture, Jan 09 2011


An alternative idea: <link>
-- 8th of 7, Jan 10 2011



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