Mega Millions Jackpot Winner Collects Award, yet Florida RegulationsHide Information
The individual who won the Mega Millions jackpot worth $1.602 billion in August finally came forward to collect their prize on September 25th. Due to a new law in Florida, lottery authorities are keeping the winner's identity hidden for 90 days following their claim.
The legislation, which is called House Bill 159, was passed last year by Florida lawmakers and the governor. It aims to protect lottery winners from potential harm caused by publicly available identifying details. Since a few incidences of violent or nonviolent acts targeted at lottery winners have occurred in the past, this law gives them a three-month window of privacy for claiming their life-changing winnings.
The Mega Millions jackpot win from August 8th is now the largest annuitized prize in Mega Millions history. The one-time cash value option was worth $794.2 million, which is less than the $1.537 billion annuitized jackpot won in October 2018 by a player in South Carolina. The higher federal interest rates have driven up the value of annuity jackpots faster than in previous times when interest rates were next to zero.
Although the Florida Lottery can't disclose any information about the winner or their choice between the cash and annuity options, there's a possibility that they picked the lump sum payment. Florida's rules for claiming prizes could imply that the winner opted for the one-time cash distribution.
The rules state that within 60 days of winning, Mega Millions and Powerball winners must notify the lottery administration if they want to receive the one-time cash option. They have up to 180 days to choose the full value through the 30-year annuity. Since the winner came forward within the 60-day period, it's likely that they selected the lump sum.
The $794.2 million win will eventually be reduced to around $500.38 million after federal taxes. Fortunately, Florida does not levy taxes on lottery winnings.
The previous winning streak without any jackpot in Powerball continued for a 30th consecutive draw on Wednesday. The jackpot has been unclaimed since July 19th. The top prize for the upcoming draw is predicted to reach $925 million in annuity, while the one-time cash value is expected to reach $434.2 million.
Powerball is inching closer to reaching 10 digits for a jackpot, with only eight jackpots ever surpassing that amount in US lottery history. Mega Millions contributed to five of those record-breaking prizes, while Powerball was responsible for three. If no one takes home the Powerball jackpot during the next draw on Saturday, this run will become the ninth $1 billion+ lottery jackpot in US history.
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Source: www.casino.org
