Don’t Be Discouraged Buying This Mega Millions Ticket
If you are one of the millions who didn’t hit the $ 1.6 billion Mega Millions jackpot yesterday, don’t be discouraged by the $ 2 you spent on your ticket. Because the lottery has a lot of benefits.
Most of the lottery-related personal finance tips are: wealthy people aren’t rich because they play the lottery (hey look, CNBC wrote this story earlier today!); you are wasting your money buying tickets. And this is not necessarily wrong – if you buy lottery tickets day after day in the hope of getting rich, then your money is better spent on something else. But when these mega jackpots happen once in a while, it’s not exactly a waste to play.
That’s because, for one, it’s not that expensive to play, assuming you don’t follow this guy’s advice and buy as many tickets as you can afford. You know, don’t empty your savings account to gamble, but when it seems like the whole country is overwhelmed by one billion plus the bank, buying a ticket and exchanging it at the moment is $ 2 well spent for a lot of people. It’s fun! The pleasure costs $ 2. Everyone cheer up a little.
But it’s worth it because the lottery helps fund it. While 50 percent of ticket sales go to the bank ($ 1.6 billion), the other half goes to paying seller fees, lottery administration costs, and government spending. For this last part, each state determines where its lottery proceeds go, including things like schools, seniors centers, and other public goods.
In Kentucky, most of this money goes to educational programs and scholarships to offset student costs. Pennsylvania residents can expect their lottery proceeds to go towards property tax and rental discounts , free and discounted transportation, and more. New Jersey Lottery proceeds benefit the School Feeding Program , Tuition Benefits, Development Centers for the Disabled, and Homes for Soldiers with Disabilities. (However, not all states use the top-up lottery; some use it to replace funds meant for things like education.)
If buying a $ 2 lottery ticket has given you a reason to look forward to the earth dying and politicians across the country lie and incite violence , then go for it. In fact, a $ 620 million Powerball is being drawn tonight.