Texas Powerball Rules
You have to be at least 18 years old to play Powerball in Texas. You can buy tickets up to 9:00pm Central Time (10:00pm Eastern Time) on draw days and just need to select your own numbers or ask for a Quick Pick if you want a random selection. You can play the same numbers for up to 15 consecutive drawings in advance by marking the appropriate box in the ‘Multi-Draw’ section of the playslip.
In Texas, you have to choose whether you would accept the cash value or the annuity at the time when you purchase your ticket rather than when you claim your jackpot. There is no state tax on lottery prizes.
How to Claim Prizes
If you win an award of $599 or less, you should be able to collect your money from any licensed lottery retailer.
For a prize of $600 to $2.5 million, there are several options. You can either visit your local claim center, the Texas Lottery Commission headquarters in Austin, or fill out a claim form and mail it, along with the winning ticket, to the lottery’s headquarters at the address below. It will normally take four to six weeks to process claims that are mailed.
Texas Lottery Commission
ATTN: Austin Claim Center
PO Box 16600
Austin, TX 78761-6600
Four claim centers, as well as the Austin office, also process prizes of up to $5 million: the Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio centers all pay our checks up to this amount. All prizes of more than $5 million, including any jackpot which is to be paid out as an annuity, must be claimed at the lottery’s headquarters.
To claim your prize, you will need to provide your winning ticket and identification. Acceptable forms of ID include a valid driver’s license, state-issued identification card, birth certificate, passport, resident alien identification, student ID card and social security card.
Claim Period
You have 180 days from the date of the draw to claim Powerball prizes in Texas. Any prizes not claimed in this period will be used to support education and veterans in the state.
Local Claim Centers
The table below shows the addresses and contact details of the local claim centers in Texas. Opening hours for each office are 8:00am – 5:00pm local time.
| Location | Address | Telephone Number |
|---|---|---|
| Abilene | 209 S. Danville Suite C-103 Abilene, TX 79605 | (325) 698-3926 |
| Amarillo | 7120 IH-40 West, Suite 110 Park West Office Centre Amarillo, TX 79106 | (806) 353-0478 |
| Austin | 1801 Congress Avenue Austin, TX 78701 | (512) 344-5252 |
| Beaumont | 6444 Concord Rd. Beaumont, TX 77708 | (409) 347-0734 |
| Corpus Christi | 4639 Corona Suite 19 Corpus Christi, TX 78411 | (361) 853-4793 |
| Dallas | 8700 N Stemmons Freeway Suite 140 Dallas, TX 75247 | (214) 905-4912 |
| El Paso | 401 East Franklin Avenue Suite 150 El Paso, TX 79901 | (915)-834-4920 |
| Fort Worth | 4040 Fossil Creek Blvd. Suite 102 Fort Worth, TX 76137 | (817) 232-9478 |
| Houston | 1919 N. Loop W. Suite 100 Houston, TX 77008 | (713) 869-6451 |
| Laredo | 1202 Del Mar Blvd. Suite 4 Laredo, TX 78045 | (956) 727-8750 |
| Lubbock | 6202 Iola Ave Suite #900A Lubbock, TX 79424 | (806) 783-0602 - Main line (806) 783-0613 - Line 2 |
| McAllen | 4501 West Business 83 STE A2 McAllen, TX 78501 | (956) 630-2278 |
| Odessa | 4682 E. University Suite 100 Odessa, TX 79762 | (432) 550-6340 |
| San Antonio | 9514 Console Suite 111 San Antonio, TX 78229 | (210) 593-0210 |
| Tyler | 3800 Paluxy Drive Suite 330 Tyler, TX 75703 | (903) 509-9008 |
| Victoria | 2306 Leary Lane, Suite 400 Victoria, TX 77901 | (361) 573-4185 |
Going Public
You are allowed to remain anonymous if you win a prize of $1 million or more. However, if you choose the annuity option and decide to take the money in 30 yearly instalments rather than a lump sum, you will lose your right to anonymity 30 days after claiming the prize.
Where Does the Money Go?
When you buy a Powerball ticket in Texas, 66.8 percent of the money goes towards the prize fund. A small amount is set aside for the cost of lottery administration (3.3 percent) and retailer commissions (5.3 percent) and the rest is reserved for good causes.
The big winner is Texas education, with 25 percent of the revenue funneled into the Foundation School Fund. In the 2018 fiscal year, the Texas Lottery transferred $1.43 billion to the fund, helping to support public education throughout the state. A small percentage of Texas Lottery revenue (0.4 percent) is also donated to a fund to help veterans and their families.
Texas Powerball Winners
Texas created its first jackpot winner on May 29, 2013, when Paul McDowell from the small northern town of Ravenna in Fannin County claimed $40 million. He said he might buy ‘a few cows, a couple of tractors and a new car’, but he was mostly looking forward to enjoying his retirement.
The Lone Star State’s biggest win came a couple of years later, with the lucky player claiming their money on behalf of an anonymous trust. They matched the full winning line in the $564 million drawing on February 11, 2015, along with two other ticket holders. Each winner received a $188 million share of the jackpot.
