The Powerball lottery remains elusive, yet undeterred are players who have been eagerly attempting to seize it since the last successful bagging on 19th July, by a fortunate Californian who walked away with a hefty haul of $1.08 billion, marking the third highest jackpot in the lottery’s history.
Currently, the winnings stand at an impressive $550 million following 23 roll overs due to no matching ticket numbers being drawn. The string of unsuccessful drawings was extended further following Monday night’s failure to match the combination of 9, 25, 27, 53, 66, and the red Powerball 5.
With the cash prize escalating to around half a billion dollars, this jackpot is inching closer to the illustrious top ten of Powerball’s biggest payouts since its launch in 1992. Managed by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), Powerball awaits hopeful contenders three times a week at 10:59 PM Eastern Time from its base in the Florida Lottery’s studio in Tallahassee.
So far, the lucrative Powerball jackpot has been clinched four times in the current year. The winning stretch initiated in Washington on February 6 with a colossal sum of $754.6 million. Following this, the fortunes favored Virginia with a cool $162.6 million win on March 4. A month later, a player in Ohio reaped a massive $252.6 million victory. The winning spree culminated with the record jackpot claimed in Los Angeles’ infamous Skid Row.
Despite containing the thrill and excitement of winning, lottery jackpots come with a heavy tax slice. The federal government regards these winnings as personal income, translating into an immediate shift of the lottery winner into the highest tax bracket. The winnings, hence, are subjected to a 37% tax rate. The silver lining, however, is that certain states, including California, Delaware, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming, do not levy taxes on lottery gains. New York, on the other hand, garners a hefty share, imposing a 10.9% effective tax rate.
Monday night’s Powerball drawing, despite not yielding a jackpot, nevertheless rendered a sizeable number of smaller winners. More than 745,000 winning tickets were produced, with the largest gain of $1 million bestowed in Michigan. This came close to doubling, if only the winner had purchased the additional Megaplier. Nine additional players secured $50,000 each upon matching four white balls with the Powerball. For three lucky players, who had taken the Megaplier along, the prize money doubled to $100,000. The lottery continues to bring joy to countless others with smaller $100 and $200 prizes.
