The Mega Millions Lottery has reached
$540 million, making it the largest lottery ever in world history. All across
the U.S., state lotteries are reporting record numbers of sales in advance of
this drawing. This is in spite of the fact that the odds of winning are 1 in
176 million.
Although each ticket holder has very
little chance of winning, the states that participate in the lottery are making
out big time. The Mega Millions tickets go for one dollar, and the state
lottery agency gets 50 cents of that. This means the states are going to rake
in megabucks due to the record number of ticket sales. The timing couldn’t be
better for most states since they have been struggling just like the rest of us
through the recent hard economic times.
The news gets even better for the
state where the lottery winner is located. If the winner takes a lump sum
payout (which seems highly likely) that could mean tens of millions of dollars
in tax revenue for that state. That would go a long way toward helping that
state move toward an economic recovery.
The Ohio state tax commissioner said,
“We’re not holding our breath waiting for a tax windfall for the state, but we
always root for Ohio and Ohioans and hope lottery luck comes to a Buckeye.” The
former budget director for Montana who is now a state senator took a more practical
view. “I just bought a ticket, and I hope it’s me.”
It will be interesting to see who, if
anyone, wins that jackpot and how states benefit from the extra funds.
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