§ 36–601.18. Unclaimed prizes.

(a) An unclaimed prize for a winning ticket or share shall be retained by the Office for the person entitled to the prize for 180 days after the drawing in which the prize was won. If no claim is made for the prize within the 180-day period, the unclaimed prize funds shall be used as follows:

(1) The first $150,000 in fiscal year 2012 shall be used by the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (“Deputy Mayor”) to fund Earned Income Tax Credit outreach and marketing efforts for District residents. The Deputy Mayor is authorized to make direct grants to qualified community partners to effectuate the purpose of this paragraph, subject to terms and conditions approved by the Deputy Mayor.

(2) The next $350,000 in fiscal year 2012 shall be deposited in the unrestricted balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia and recognized as fiscal year 2012 revenues.

(3) The next $250,000 in fiscal year 2012 shall be used by the Deputy Mayor to fund cultural activities in the Chinatown community. The Deputy Mayor is authorized to make direct grants to qualified community partners to effectuate the purpose of this paragraph, subject to terms and conditions approved by the Deputy Mayor.

(4) The next $15,000 in fiscal year 2012 shall be used to fund the Mayor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Nutrition.

(5) Any subsequent unclaimed prize funds shall be used by the Chief Financial Officer as additional prizes in lottery games or promotions.

(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the holding of bonus games or drawings with a preannounced period for claiming prizes of other than 180 days. The Chief Financial Officer shall have the authority to establish by rule or regulation the claim periods for tickets issued by electronic instant-ticket-vending machines, games offered via the internet, and promotional games.

(Mar. 10, 1981, D.C. Law 3-172, § 4, 27 DCR 4736; Sept. 14, 2011, D.C. Law 19-21, § 7032, 58 DCR 6226; Oct. 8, 2016, D.C. Law 21-160, § 7072(r), 63 DCR 10775; May 3, 2019, D.C. Law 22-312, § 2(b), 66 DCR 1402; Mar. 22, 2023, D.C. Law 24-332, § 6(a), 70 DCR 1582.)

Prior Codifications

2001 Ed., § 3-1318

1981 Ed., § 2-2518.

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 19-21 rewrote the section, which formerly read:

“Unclaimed prizes for a winning ticket or share shall be retained by the Board for the person entitled thereto for 1 year after the drawing in which the prize was won. If no claim is made for the prize within the 1-year period, the prize shall be paid over to the General Fund of the District of Columbia. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the holding of bonus games or drawings with a preannounced period for claiming of prizes of other than 1 year.”

Short Title

Short title: Section 7031 of D.C. Law 19-21 provided that subtitle D of title VII of the act may be cited as “Lottery Winnings Redemption Amendment Act of 2011”.