The Mega Millions jackpot has reached $1 billion for the Christmas Eve drawing, marking the seventh-largest prize in the game's history. Strong ticket sales over the past 48 hours pushed the projected jackpot up from its initial estimate of $944 million.

Top Mega Millions Jackpots:

• $1.602B (Florida, Aug. 2023)
• $1.537B (South Carolina, Oct. 2018)
• $1.348B (Maine, Jan. 2023)
• $1.337B (Illinois, July 2022)
• $1.128B (New Jersey, March 2024)
• $1.05B (Michigan, Jan. 2021)
• $1B (Current jackpot, Dec. 2024)

The odds of winning are 1 in 302,575,350, significantly lower than being struck by lightning (1 in 40 million) or dying in a plane crash (1 in 11 million).

Prize Options:

• Annuity: $1 billion paid over 30 years
• Cash option: $448.8 million (approximately $282.8 million after federal taxes)

State tax implications vary, ranging from 0% to 10.9%. Eight states don't tax lottery winnings: California, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming.

The drawing takes place at 11 p.m. EST in Atlanta, with ticket sales closing one hour before in most states. If no winner emerges, the jackpot will roll over for a 30th time for Friday's drawing.

Modern electronic sales systems have improved jackpot estimates compared to the paper-based reporting of the 1990s, providing more accurate projections through real-time data collection.

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