Powerball jackpot increases again -- to $1.5B

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Lottery officials increased their estimate of the huge jackpot for the second day in a row Tuesday because of immense interest in the prize.

No one matched all six Powerball numbers Saturday night, leading to the current enormous prize.

"When the jackpots get big like this, it creates a frenzy," said Brian Johnson, vice president of finance at Casey's General Stores, which runs 1,900 stores in 14 states.

He said QuikTrip stores have been busy for nearly two weeks since Powerball's jackpot first climbed into ridiculous levels.

The odds of matching all six numbers to win the jackpot are one in 292.2 million.

Whoever wins will have to pay 39.6 percent of the prize in federal income taxes, and any state taxes. Lottery officials expect at least 80 percent of the 292.2 million number combinations will be purchased before Wednesday's drawing. That increases the chances -- but doesn't guarantee -- that someone will win the jackpot.