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The Powerball jackpot is $1 billion. Here's how much you'd take home after taxes

Nbcwashington · · 548 words · By Danielle Abreu
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What to know about The Powerball jackpot is $1 billion. Here's how much you'd take home after taxes

The jackpot for Wednesday's Powerball drawing rose to $1 billion, the eighth largest grand prize in the game's history.

Claims checked 9
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center100%
Right0%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

The jackpot for Wednesday's Powerball drawing rose to $1 billion, the eighth largest grand prize in the game's history.

Why it matters

The massive prize for a single-winning ticket who chooses an annuity option, paid over 30 years.

Common ground

Winners almost always opt for cash prizes, which would be $433.1 million.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/powerball-jackpot-taxe…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

verified Verified By Reference 4
info Single Source 2
check_circle Corroborated 2
help Insufficient Evidence 1
verified
Claim 1: “five states that don't have a lottery (Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah)”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and multiple other sources confirm that Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah are the five states without a state lottery.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Most states have state-sponsored and multi-state lotteries. There are only five states that do not sell lottery tickets: Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. In some states, revenues from lotter…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gambling_in_the_United_States
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah don’t have lotteries.US gambling laws can vary from state to state and are subject to change. Most US states have a state-run lottery. Most but not all. Five s…
https://www.playusa.com/news/5-state-could-add-lottery-soon/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Lotteries now operate in 45 states; the five states that still do not allow them are Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah.
https://www.colorado.edu/asmagazine/2024/03/20/youre-very-li…
verified
Claim 2: “Winners almost always opt for cash prizes, which would be $433.1 million.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence discusses the general concept of cash options and Powerball, but does not mention the specific cash value of $433.1 million for a $1 billion jackpot.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Powerball is an American lottery game offered by 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and the United Kingdom, and overseen by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerball
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Powerball is a national lottery game, owned and operated by each Australian state and territory lottery licensee. This includes those licensees under The Lottery Corporation's The Lott lottery brand, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerball_(Australia)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Powerball is a multi-state lottery game in the United States. Powerball may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerball_(disambiguation)
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
Claim 3: “The tax applies to gifts you give over $15 million for 2026. And it's taxed at a rate of 40%, according to the IRS.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the 2026 gift tax threshold of $15 million or the 40% rate.
info
Claim 4: “A winner in Washington, D.C., would take end up keeping about $262 million of the total winnings, while residents in Maryland would take home $259.2 million. In Virginia, the total take-home amount would be slightly higher at $269.9 million.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence for this claim is completely irrelevant, returning results for a film series called 'After' instead of tax calculations for DC, Maryland, and Virginia.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The After film series consists of American romantic dramas based on the Anna Todd -authored After novels. The plot centers around the positive and negative experiences of a romantic relationship betwe…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/After_(film_series)
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — After is a 2019 American romantic drama film directed by Jenny Gage, who co-wrote the screenplay with Susan McMartin, Tamara Chestna, and Tom Betterton, based on the 2014 novel of the same name by Ann…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/After_(2019_film)
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 21, 2026 · To take a deeper dive into the After series and better understand what happened when, take a look at this guide to the movies, in order of release date, and where they fit into the stor…
https://movieweb.com/after-movies-in-order/
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Claim 5: “The prize is subject to an automatic federal withholding, with the IRS levying 24% on winnings of more than $5,000.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources explicitly state that the IRS automatically withholds 24% on lottery winnings exceeding $5,000.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — IRS is the United States Internal Revenue Service, the revenue service of the U.S. federal government. IRS, irs, or IRs may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IRS_(disambiguation)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and for administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_Revenue_Service
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — President Donald J. Trump, et al. v. Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Department of the Treasury was a lawsuit brought against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by President Donald Trump in January …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump_v._Internal_Revenue_Serv…
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 6: “The jackpot for Wednesday's Powerball drawing rose to $1 billion, the eighth largest grand prize in the game's history.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While the evidence confirms Powerball is a multi-state lottery, the provided search results do not contain the specific jackpot amount ($1 billion) or its rank (8th largest) for a specific Wednesday drawing.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The New Zealand Lotteries Commission, trading as Lotto New Zealand since 2013, is a Crown entity that operates nationwide lotteries in New Zealand. It was established in 1987 and operates under the Ga…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotto_New_Zealand
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lotteries in Australia include various lottery related products licensed by The Lottery Corporation, The Lottery Office and Lotterywest Australian lottery companies. Lotteries operators are licensed a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotteries_in_Australia
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Powerball is an American lottery game offered by 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and the United Kingdom, and overseen by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerball
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “if you're lucky enough to live in California, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington or Wyoming, you won't pay any state taxes on your winnings.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent web sources list California, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming as states that do not charge state tax/withholding on lottery winnings.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — ...California, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming as having no withholding for lottery winnings and other summaries identify no‑income‑tax states as benefit…
https://factually.co/fact-checks/finance/states-tax-lottery-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The lottery tax calculator (or taxes on lottery winnings calculator) helps you estimate the tax amount deducted from a lottery prize and compare the money you would receive if you took either the lump…
https://www.omnicalculator.com/finance/lottery-tax
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — While some states - California, Florida, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, U.S Virgin Islands, Washington State and Wyoming – do not charge state tax on lottery winnings, the…
https://www.lotto.net/help/tax
info
Claim 8: “the millions you win from the lottery pushes you into the top tax bracket of 37%.”
SINGLE SOURCE
One web source (Mega Millions Payout Calculator) explicitly states that jackpot winnings place winners in the top 37% tax bracket. Other sources discuss state brackets but not the federal 37% specifically.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — "The Lottery" is a short story by Shirley Jackson that was first published in The New Yorker on June 26, 1948. The story describes a fictional small American community that observes an annual traditio…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lottery
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A lottery (or lotto) is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse them to the extent of organizing a nation…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lottery
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery established in 1994 in the United Kingdom. It is regulated by the Gambling Commission, and is operated by Allwyn Entertainment, who took o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Lottery_(United_Kingd…
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 9: “State taxes in most jurisdictions, which range from a national low of 2.9% in North Dakota to a high of 10.9% in New York.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about North Dakota and the US states, but does not mention specific lottery tax percentages (2.9% or 10.9%).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Bank of North Dakota (BND) is a state-owned, state-run financial institution based in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the only government-owned, general-service bank in the United States. It is the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_North_Dakota
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bismarck () is the capital city of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the state's second-most populous city, after Fargo. The population was 73,622 at the 202…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bismarck,_North_Dakota
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota, United States. It wa…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Dakota_State_University
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.