https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerball#Jackpot_accumulation_and_payment_options

.

The jackpot actually only represents 32% of the ticket sales. That means people have really spent almost 4 billion dollars on this drawing. the 1.3 billion jackpot is only 32% of the ticket sales.

so if you take lump sum payment, which is 700 million, then after all taxes, fed, state , local it's about 300 million.

so they lottery is raking in over 90% of the dough, 90% profit. Casinos in las vegas brag their slots have 98% pay out, jesus. the lottery has a less than 10% payout.

and also, think about this.

the last winning number was November 4th. that means there's been 17 consecutive drawings without winners.

so there's been 4 billion tickets sold.

The odds of winning are one in 290 million. The odds of the number not being selected out of 4 billion numbers is 1 in 12. but there's been 17 other drawings, there's been 17 other winning numbers that did not match.

so it's not 1 in 12 odds, it's 1 in 204 odds that there would not be a winning ticket by now.

One in 204 odds is a might suspect.