The Mega Millions ticket valued at nearly $1.13 billion, which the winner would have received via a 30-year annuity, has now been claimed.
On March 26, 2024, one ticket matched all six numbers drawn for the Mega Millions. The numbers drawn were 7, 11, 22, 29, 38, and the gold Mega Ball was 4.
Almost nine months later, the fortunate player who beat the slim odds of one in over 302.5 million has stepped forward, but they are keeping their identity private. On Monday, officials from the New Jersey Lottery declared that the winning jackpot ticket purchased at the ShopRite grocery and liquor store on Route 66 in Neptune Township had been claimed.
The victor selected the lump-sum cash option of $537.5 million. Although certain states mandate that significant lottery winners disclose their identities to preserve public trust, New Jersey permits winners to stay anonymous for prizes exceeding $600. Individuals winning prizes under that amount need to verify their identity with lottery officials in order to receive their payout.
Earnings Distribution
Aside from granting winners privacy, New Jersey allows them up to a year to claim their prizes. For a significant victory such as the March 2024 Mega Millions jackpot, the 12-month period provides winners sufficient opportunity to seek advice from their financial advisors and/or attorneys on whether to accept the total jackpot amount paid out over 30 years or opt for the lump-sum cash payment.
In this situation — similar to how most large jackpot victors act — the winner chose the cash option. The $537.5 million is prior to a federal tax of 37% and an effective state tax of 10.75%.
The federal tax decreases the net payout by $198.8 million. The state lowers the payout by $57.8 million, bringing the total tax liability to around $256.6 million, which is nearly 50% of the initial prize. The total cash prize received is approximately $280.9 million.
Lottery officials had limited additional information to share, such as the winner's location, gender, age, and history of playing Mega Millions. ShopRite announced that it contributed its $30K bonus reward for selling the winning ticket to nearby food banks.
Indefinitely Unidentified
In 2020, legislators in New Jersey revised the state’s lottery regulations to permit anonymous claim of winnings. The New Jersey Legislature passed the legislation with unanimous backing.
Lottery officials stated that the $1.13 billion jackpot recipient “values privacy” and chose to stay anonymous.
"A 2020 New Jersey law allows lottery winners to remain anonymous indefinitely, and the identity of winners will not be included in materials available to public inspection under the State’s Open Public Records Act,” a release from the New Jersey Lottery explained. “Players claiming Lottery prizes worth at least $600 must still provide their identity to lottery officials to claim a prize.”
With a pre-tax amount of $537.5 million, the Mega Millions victory in March 2024 ranks as the ninth-largest cash lottery payout in U.S. history and the sixth-greatest in Mega Millions history. Mega Millions is poised to alter another life, with the announced annuitized jackpot for tomorrow evening’s drawing set at $944 million ($429.4 million in cash).
