New Zealand Lotteries has made a payment of $189.3 million to the Lottery Grants Board.
The money is from record Lotto sales and is the biggest payment to be made to the board. It will go to community groups.
Two big jackpots have driven up Lotto sales by nearly 17%, creating more cash for community groups.
Lotto had record sales of almost $908 million in the past financial year.
Internal Affairs Minister Nathan Guy says most of the money will go straight to community projects, with some spent on administration. But a third will be reserved for future funding if the economy plummets further.
Two major recipients are SPARC and the New Zealand Film Commision. SPARC gets about $30 million annually and is getting an extra $2.84 million.
