The Daily Populous Sunday August 31st, 2025 morning edition
Authored by cnbc.com and submitted by Cash4Jesus

More than a year after the Powerball jackpot last topped $1 billion, the prize has climbed back to that level ahead of Saturday night's drawing at 10:59 p.m. ET.

After 39 drawings without a winner, the $1 billion prize ranks as the sixth-largest jackpot in the game's history, according to the consortium that runs the lottery. The last $1 billion jackpot was claimed in April 2024, and the biggest since then was a $526.5 million win in March.

To claim the prize, you'll need to beat odds of 1 in 292,201,338 and match all six numbers, including the red Powerball. Smaller prizes are also available, including $1 million for matching all five white balls without the Powerball.

Winners can choose between two payout options: the full jackpot spread out as annual payments over 30 years or a lump-sum cash option worth just under half the advertised prize.

No matter which option you select, the Internal Revenue Service takes a cut. Winnings are considered taxable income, so 24% is withheld immediately. But the windfall would almost certainly put you in the top 37% federal tax bracket, so expect to pay the rest when you file your 2025 tax return.

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On top of that, most states levy their own income taxes, ranging from 2.5% to 10.9%. Eight states don't tax lottery winnings at all: California, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming.

It's worth noting that five states don't participate in Powerball: Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah.

Based on a top federal rate of 37%, here's what the total after-tax payout would look like in each state and Washington, D.C., for both the lump sum and the 30-year annuity, according to USAMega.com.

Quercus_ on August 30th, 2025 at 23:59 UTC »

Lump sum payout is $453 million, which is at least in principle the amount of invested by the state to generate the income that they would pay you if you took the annuity.

Taxes on that 453 million would be 37% top marginal federal tax rate, plus whatever state taxes you owe.

I think I could get by on $280 million. If you can get just a hair over 4% return on that money invested, that's right at $1,000,000 a month income. It'd be a stretch to keep my spending balanced with that, but I think I could pull it off.

ZeusApolloAttack on August 30th, 2025 at 23:58 UTC »

Seems like time to bring back one of the greatest comment threads on reddit

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/s/TZ5Lpo2hg9

Cash4Jesus on August 30th, 2025 at 23:42 UTC »

$236 to $285M cash value. Still a lot even if you split it.