You would have been better off to have won the $400 million during the last 2-3 years. The tax rates on that amount are likely to go up significantly this year and in the next 3 years. And there is even continued clucking about adding a "wealth tax" on top of it, which is being floated around among the usual suspects in Congress.
BTW, many lotteries offer a large-award winner the choice of either a lump sum or annual payments. One would have to do the math and get professional tax and legal advice to see which is the better option.
