If you're really, really lucky you could be ringing in the new year with a very, very large check.
One of the largest Powerball jackpots in history is up for grabs Monday night at an estimated annuitized $810 million. The jackpot is the fifth largest in game history and the 10th largest in U.S. lottery history.
The cash value for Monday night’s drawing is worth an estimated $408.9 million. A sole winner in Texas who took the cash option would take home about $311 million after paying 24% ($98 million) in federal taxes. There is no additional state tax on lottery winnings in Texas, however, the payout would move the winner into the highest tax bracket where an additional 13% tax could be owed ($53 million in this case).
If there is no jackpot winner in the next Powerball drawing, the Grand Prize for the Wednesday, Jan. 3 drawing will roll to an estimated annuitized $880 million.
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“Our players are excited to begin the new year with a chance at winning a massive jackpot prize and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that the winner of this Powerball grand prize is a Texas Lottery player,” said Gary Grief, executive director of the Texas Lottery. “Anticipation for tonight’s drawing is on the rise and is leading to a boost in lottery sales in Texas, which greatly contributes to funding public education in our state. We want to wish all of our players good luck and remind them to play responsibly. It only takes one ticket to win.”
Even if you don't win the grand prize, 28 second-tier Powerball prizes of $1 million or larger were sold to Texas Lottery players last year, according to the Texas Lottery. That includes three during the current jackpot run. Most recently, a $2 million second-tier prize-winning ticket was sold in Tomball for the Dec. 30 drawing. Before that, winning tickets worth $2 million were sold in Katy for the Dec. 27 drawing and in Austin for the Dec. 13 drawing.
Since joining the Powerball game in 2010, Texas has had two Powerball Grand Prize winners, including its most recent in February 2015 when TL Management Trust, Andrew Weber, Trustee of Austin, claimed a share of the $564.1 million Grand Prize with two other winners.
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The Lotto Texas Jackpot, worth an estimated annuitized $5 million, is also up for grabs Monday night. The cash value option on the state lottery jackpot is $2.93 million -- which would still be a nice way to start the new year.
