Yes, I'm still around and I do read the Lottery Posts! However, a bit of telephone information from the PIO, Public Information Officer in my state, New Mexico. The question I posed was: "if I when the New Mexico lottery, can I remain anonymous?" His response was: "in the old days, yes, but since the legislature passed a new law, no!"
If a person wins the lottery, his or her name and his or her city will be given (public information) but the winner has the option to have his or her picture taken. He also stated that...when the winner comes in, the PIO counsels the winner -- advises him or her to get a lawyer, a CPA, or a tax accountant. He also mentioned that the majority of the winners DO NOT HAVE A LAWYER OR AN ACCOUNTANT. The purpose of the accountant is...your lottery winnings will move you to a higher tax bracket. He went on to say that some people (here in New Mexico) think that winning $10,000.00 is a lot of money, but even if you win $100,000 -- the counselors will offer advice. In other words, you don't have to win $5 million or $215 million to get their advice.
Although he advises people to give a news conference (to get it over with, avoiding possible hassles later on) -- I disagreed with him. I told him that people don't want and people don't need the exposure. Then, he had the nerve to say: "do you remember when one of the people won the $315 million dollar lottery and he gave a news conference?" I said: "yes." He responded with: "well, I saw him in the store the other day and he's still living in the same house; the same neighborhood -- and he didn't move! Now, my mind was racing, thinking...and your point is?
Anyway, he told me we can't force you to take a picture, but remember...winning the lottery is won with public monies and the public has a right to know who won to avoid the nay sayers who might think that the lottery is phony. Therefore, annonymity is out of the quesiton: your name and your city is public information! By the way, he said that only a handful of states (he didn't mention them) will wllow you remain anonymous.
To tell you the truth, I like the part about not having my picture taken. My name and city -- that's not a big deal. For example, let's say there are 10 Mary Jane's living in Albuquerque. If their numbers are listed and they're being harrassed by callers, the callers will have to contact all 10 Mary Janes unless they have CALLER ID or ANSWERING MACHINES. This brings me to the point: the counselor also stated that he advises the winners to get CALLER ID, pay the extra $15.00 a month. I told him I have an answering machine, I have a lawyer, but I don't have an accountant. He said, "good!"
For the record (my words), H&R Block has counselors in their separate tax division who counsel the well-to do, rich, including, instant lottery winners.
Finally, the PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER was warm, cordial, and interested in what I had to say. As someone mentioned on this post (I can't recall the name), get your business (house) in order before you win the lottery, i.e., lawyer, unlisted telephone number, tax account, or CPA.
Blue
