Here’s Why Idaho Powerball Winners Can’t Keep Their Jackpot a Secret

If you haven’t heard, lottery officials have now sweetened the jackpot for Saturday, September 6’s Powerball drawing to a $1.8 billion! With the recent bump, the upcoming jackpot becomes the second biggest jackpot in the game’s history.

When the office bookie came around asking if you’d like to play in the office pool for the near record setting prize, you said yes and Venmo-ed them the money. Even though you know the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, your gut was telling you that if you didn’t join, the group would win and you’d be the only one at work the next day. 

READ MORE: More than 27,000 Idahoans Win Powerball Prize on September 3

If by some miracle it did happen for your group, would everyone be able to keep the big win a secret? I was in a pool with 17 media people during Wednesday night’s draw and I highly doubt that all of us would’ve been able to keep our mouths shut if we won $1.4 billion to split amongst ourselves. 

But what if the big win didn’t come from a ticket that was part of the office pool. What if it was one that you picked up at Albertsons while doing your regular grocery shopping? Do you think you could go back to work on Monday knowing that you never need to work another day in your life? When I polled our Facebook audience, they were split 50/50. 

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Many of the people who said “yes, I’d go back to work” added that they’d act like nothing happened. Sadly, even if you could put on an Oscar-worthy performance, you live in Idaho. That means that your co-workers, family members and other members of the public will eventually know that you won the lottery.  

In Idaho, when you win a lottery prize over $600 you become subject of Idaho’s Public Records Law. The “winners awareness” section in the Idaho Lottery winners guide reads:

Your full name, the town where you live, the game you won, the amount you won (before and after taxes), the name of the retailer where you bought the ticket, and the amount the retailer receives for selling the ticket are all a matter of public record. 

After you claim your big win, the Idaho Lottery will issue a press release and put your name on their website. They, however, provide the press or other members of the public with information like your home address or phone number. 

It’s possible that your name, city and photo will be used in future promotional campaigns after a big win. The main reason the Idaho Lottery does this is to show the public that lottery games are legitimate and that real people really do win these prizes. However, winners can submit a written request for no additional publicity that’s complete with their reasoning for asking to be exempt. 

According to USA Today, only 11 states grant big lottery winners true anonymity.