YOU WON THE LOTTERY!.... but we dont have money to pay you

[DankNstickY]

One winning $314.9M Powerball ticket
From the National Desk
Published 12/26/2002 10:38 AM


HURRICANE, W.Va., Dec. 26 (UPI) -- Christmas was just beginning Thursday for whoever holds the winning $314.9 million Powerball ticket.

The ticket for the record Powerball jackpot was purchased at the C&L Super Serve.

"I hope it's somebody around here that won, somebody locally, that way it would be a good Christmas present," Amy Trogdon, whose father owns the store, told CBS Radio News.

"I got a phone call from my father ... about 3:30 this morning. We're really excited. It's been hectic, really, really crazy. We're just waiting for the winner to come in."

The store will get 1 percent of the prize.

Though not immediately identified, the winner opted for a $170 million lump-sum payment, lottery officials said.

The winning numbers were 5, 14, 16, 29 and 53. The Powerball was 7.

The jackpot is the biggest ever won by a single ticket although the Big Game holds the record for largest jackpot -- $363 million won by ticket holders in Michigan and Illinois -- and the second-largest -- $331 million, split among three tickets.

Wednesday's jackpot had been building since Oct. 30.

Officials at the Multi-State Lottery had been predicting a $280 million Christmas Day jackpot but an unexpected run on tickets during the day Wednesday pushed the prize to record levels. Multi-State Lottery spokesman John Mahoney said lottery officials had expected ticket sales to be light Wednesday but convenience stores were inundated, with $11 million in tickets sold.

At the Shell Food Plaza off Interstate 94 just north of the Illinois border in Wisconsin, a line of cars snaked out of the parking lot as clerks punched tickets at a rapid clip.

"There's nothing to do but watch TV today," Mark Ocheda of Chicago told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in explaining why he made the trip across the border. On Tuesday, someone bought $1,000 in tickets at the outlet.

Nona Linden of Omaha, Neb., had been planning on taking Wednesday off.

"We would have been closed Christmas Day if the Powerball drawing wasn't tonight," Linden told the Omaha World-Herald. She opened J's Amoco in Council Bluffs, Iowa, for eight hours "for anyone wanting to buy a last chance."

Powerball is played in 23 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

but today i was watching the show "good day live" on fox, and they said that the states don't have enough money to pay the winner with.

why do they raise it that high, knowing that they don't have enough money?

i'd hate to be the winner....
"sorry sir, we dont have $315 million, will you settle for $134.00?"

[nickel]

wha? that is just wrong. i thought it was based on a percentage of the # of tickets sold.

[Butch]

The Powerball Lottery is a lottery held by many states in conjunction with one another. They all sell lottery tickets with a % going to the overall pot. The West Virginia lottery system alone does not have enough on hand to make an immediate payment of the entire lump sum amount. However, once the other states pay the portion they are obligated to pay, it will not be a problem for this person to receive their money.

[DankNstickY]

Originally posted by Butch
However, once the other states pay the portion they are obligated to pay, it will not be a problem for this person to receive their money.

well thats what steve edwards said on the show... "the states...".

so somehow, the states don't have enough money.

[Butch]

I wouldn't trust Fox News

By the way, in a press conference, a West Virginia State Lottery rep stated that it was just a rumor that W. Va. couldn't make a payment. He is going to receive $10 Million today and then receive the rest of the payment in January after payment by the states.

[LPMiller]

Originally posted by DankNstickY


well thats what steve edwards said on the show... "the states...".

so somehow, the states don't have enough money.

Because the general lottery fund is different and seperate from the state coffers. It all goes into a kitty for all the states that take part. Rewards are paid out of that, and state 'earnings' are paid out of that. They don't just get the money based on tickets sold in there state. The money is there, it's just not sitting in W.Va. It's not that the states 'don't have enough money' it's that they need to get it out of the 'lottery bank'. They have a fund on hand for 100,000 payments and the like - the smaller jackpots. It's always been this way.