The Florida Lottery: Where's Our Money REALLY Going?

Last night's Powerball drawing sent people running to grocery stores and convenience outlets up until the very last minute, everyone lusting after the second largest jackpot in history. 

With astronomical odds (1 in 292 million) of winning, were you able to get your hands on any of the prize money?

If you were, congrats, the odds are definitely more in your favor than mine! If not, are you at all curious where all your ticket money is going? 

This has been a hot topic over the course of time as many have alleged that Florida hasn't kept it's promise to ensure that education is the biggest recipient. However, every time I've ever looked into the gravy train, Florida's delivered an overwhelming amount back to education within the state. 

The Powerball adds another layer of complication to the process, but here's how the "profits" of the Powerball are distributed for Floridians:

Each state gets a percentage of the profits based on the share of sales came from that state. At last check, Florida's sales were second highest nationally, so we can expect to receive the second largest share of the proceeds. 

Once the state receives the money, here's how Florida distributes it, according to he Florida Lottery: 

  • 63.8 percent paid to winners
  • 27.9 percent education
  • 5.6 percent to retailers
  • 1.4 percent to ticket vendors
  • 1.3 percent admin fees

So... nearly 30 percent of the proceeds for Florida allegedly go directly to education within the state. 

Last year these were the actual dollars that went from the Florida lottery to SFL counties: 

  • Palm Beach: $54.7 million
  • Broward: $57.6 million
  • Miami-Dade: $116.9 million

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