Don't Mess With Taxes

Eight women who work in the Monongalia County, W.Va., sheriff's department tax office are millionaires, thanks to their lucky numbers coming in Powerball Lottery.

Since the $276.3 million winning ticket wasn't confirmed by the start of business Monday, all eight showed up at work. Wanna bet how many won't be back once the lottery check clears?

Once their win is confirmed, they will receive a lump sum payout of $140 million before taxes. After Uncle Sam gets his cut, the women will have about $95.5 million, or roughly $12 million apiece.

And Monongalia County might need another lawman, too. One of the winners is married to a deputy sheriff.

Other winners: According to Online Gambling Paper, 12 other tickets matched all five numbers, but missed the Powerball. They were sold in Arizona, Colorado, Kentucky (two), Louisiana, Minnesota, North Carolina (two), Pennsylvania (three) and Wisconsin.

Each of those ticket holders will collect $200,000. That's, of course, pre-tax money. They'll likely end up actually pocketing about half that.

The jackpot for the next Powerball lottery has been reset and is expected to reach about $15 million for the Wednesday evening drawing.

Giving the tax man, or woman, his due: Since the winners all work in a tax office, I'm sure there'll be no problem in reporting their winnings. That and the fact that when you take the lump sum, the lottery office typically withholds a chunk so you don't have to worry so much about the follow-up paperwork.

The IRS takes 25 percent off the top of most winnings before the payouts get distributed. That's the case when winnings are greater than $5,000 from any sweepstakes, wagering pool or lottery. Withholding also is collected on proceeds that are 300 times or more the amount of the bet, such as might happen at a horse or dog racing track.

Then next late January or early February, you'll get a Form W-2G showing how much you won and how much was withheld. And yes, as with all income reporting forms, a copy goes to the IRS.

Winnings from bingo, keno and the slot machines usually aren't subject to withholding, but you're still required to provide your tax ID number.

And you're definitely supposed to report the income on your tax return.

More on gambling winnings, including data on just how and where we Americans can put some money on the line, can be found in this story. And this one has more information on reporting your gambling luck to the IRS.