"This is a big deal."

It could be a big deal for California, too – the state stands to gain as much as $500 million a year, enabling Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to make good on a promise to boost spending on education without raising taxes.

"We are expecting people to catch 'lotto fever' all over California once they see what the game is all about," said Ralph Almanza, a sales supervisor for the California lottery.

"Fever will also hit more often with Mega Millions because the jackpots get so large."

Almanza expects the jackpot to reach $200 million at least twice a year. But Roogow predicts it could reach a half-billion or more, shattering the current jackpot record: $314.9 million paid out in 2002 by the multistate Powerball lottery.

Forty states plus the District of Columbia have lotteries, and Americans spent $48 billion on lottery tickets last year.

Other states in the Mega Millions lottery are Texas, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia and Washington, and all the states will likely see a rise in lottery purchases when California’s entry boosts the jackpots.

But there’s one cloud on the horizon: The state’s Legislative Counsel said that joining the Mega Millions lottery could violate a 1984 law specifying that all lottery games played in California should be run by the state, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported.

The counsel’s legal opinion is not binding, but California’s entry into Mega Millions could invite lawsuits from other gambling interests, including Indian tribes with casinos.

Editor's note:
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