Lottery games are popular in the United States and several other countries, including Canada. The games vary from state to state, but the most common are Powerball and Mega Millions. There are also a number of smaller state-sponsored games. For example, New Zealand has four nationwide lottery games: the Lotto, Instant Kiwi scratch cards, Keno and Bullseye. Profits from these are distributed by the Lottery Grants Board to charities and community organizations.
In some cases, lottery profits are used to fund school programs and other public services. In other states, they are used to improve public infrastructure or reduce property taxes. In the case of Powerball, the winner can choose to receive a lump sum payment or an annuity paid over 30 years. In either case, the prize money is subject to federal and state taxes.
When a winner is selected, they must be present to claim the prize. A vetting process is also performed to ensure the winners are who they say they are. In addition, lottery prizes are considered bearer instruments, meaning that the ticket must be presented for validation. This is why many people use a photo ID to purchase tickets and sign the back of the ticket. In some cases, the winning ticket can be transferred to another person who meets the requirements of the lottery.
In this case, the prize was won by a 44-year-old man who bought a ticket at a Plaid Pantry convenience store in Portland, Oregon. He has a wife and two children. He will be able to take a lump sum payment of $621 million, or $422 million after taxes. He was unable to keep his identity private because of Oregon law, which requires winners to publicly announce their identities with few exceptions.
At a news conference, Cheng Saephan said he and his family will share the prize evenly with a friend who chipped in $100 to buy lottery tickets with them. He wore a sash at the news conference to identify himself as an Iu Mien, a subsistence-farming ethnic group that assisted American forces in the Vietnam War.
Sources in Laos have been raising suspicions that lottery officials are rigging the system by manipulating winning numbers. For example, the number 67 appeared in three consecutive drawings this year in a row. This number is associated with the turtle, a symbol of bad luck in Laos. A government official told RFA that the steering committee overseeing the lottery is considering changes, such as reducing the drawing frequency to once a week. However, he says that the committee is not involved in blocking or selling certain numbers. This is the responsibility of the lottery company and its agencies.