The Lottery Loophole: How Taxes Turn Winners into Losers The latest Powerball jackpot has reached $856 million, making it the biggest lottery prize so far this year.
However, winners actually take home a fraction of the advertised amount due to federal withholding and state taxes.
If a winner chooses the one time cash payout, they'll receive $372 million before 24% federal withholding kicks in. This results in a $282.