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N.Y. Lotto Scratch Off Game Costs $30 A Ticket

NEW YORK (CBS) ― New York State Lottery's newest jackpot is huge. It will be the largest instant jackpot in the history of the Lottery. After taxes, a Big Apple winner's earnings add up to about $674,000 a year for life.

Lottery officials unveiled the newest instant win scratch-off game Friday morning during a news conference to award prize checks to 11 winners of assorted other Lotto games. Lotto director Gordon Medenica said the latest prize is "win a $1 million dollars a year for life."

"Wow. I was shaking all night, two days. I see the ticket...I go crazy," said Brooklyn winner Mohammad Jafri. He announced he'd have no problem dropping the whopping $30 a ticket to play the new game.

However, Lottery officials are concerned about the high price for the ticket. "It's not for everyone. People buy multiple tickets all the time," Medenica said.

Frank Padavan, Queens state senator, thinks the new game is inappropriate. "This is another game with hype and enticement, with a $30 dollar ticket. It just adds another dimension to the billions of dollars that are being wagered every year… The demographic studies show that overwhelmingly, the people who participate are of the lower to mid income categories, the people who can least afford to lose money."

The new million dollar a year for life jackpot goes on sale September 2.

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