(AP) — Lottery officials say the Mega Millions game will have bigger and faster growing jackpots as a result of a series of upcoming changes.

Georgia Lottery Corp. said Friday that minimum jackpots will grow by at least $5 million after each drawing when there is no winner. And the second place prize will be increased to $1 million from $250,000.

Tickets reflecting the changes go on sale Oct. 19 for the Oct. 22 drawing.

Mega Millions drawings consist of five white balls and one Mega Ball, for a total of six winning numbers. The number of white balls will increase to 75, and the Mega Ball will decrease to 15.

Mega Millions is played in 43 states, including Nebraska. Drawings are held Tuesday and Friday.

(AP) — The average U.S. price of a gallon of gasoline has dropped 2 cents over the past two weeks.

The Lundberg Survey of fuel prices released Sunday says the price of a gallon of regular is $3.36. Midgrade costs an average of $3.56 a gallon, and premium is $3.71.

Diesel was down a penny at $3.91 gallon.

Of the cities surveyed in the Lower 48 states, Albuquerque, N.M., has the nation’s lowest average price for gas at $3.03. San Francisco has the highest at $3.81.

In California, the lowest average price was $3.64 in Sacramento. The average statewide for a gallon of regular was $3.74, a drop of 9 cents.

In Nebraska, the average price of regular is $3.35 per gallon.

(AP) — A leading groundwater management group says state aid for canals, ponds and other storage projects is the best way to preserve Nebraska’s long-term water supply.

The Nebraska Association of Resources Districts says any water-conservation aid approved by lawmakers should focus on joint projects involving local NRDs, irrigation companies and the state. Dean Edson, the group’s executive director, says upgrades to existing canals would help recharge the state’s groundwater supply. He says ponds and reservoirs could help store water when the supply is abundant, so it could be used in dryer years.

A new water-funding task force has met held meetings throughout the state to come up with specific recommendations for state aid. The group’s chairman, Sen. Tom Carlson, says the group has not yet identified specific conservation projects.

 

(AP) — The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is warning drivers in the state to be on the lookout for deer.

The agency says deer are more active this time of year, when crops are being harvested and breeding season is in full swing.

Officials say bucks become more active during breeding season, making them bolder and more susceptible to collisions with vehicles. Deer movement peaks each day near dawn and dusk.

The agency offers some tips to remain safe behind the wheel, including:

— Anticipating the possibility of deer on the road and being prepared stop suddenly;

— Wearing a seat belt;

— Driving slowly near shelterbelts, woodlots and creeks and keeping a sharp lookout for deer.

• Ryan Jeffery Kelly, 28, North Platte and Megan Diane White, 26, North Platte

 

• Nathan Matthias Fry, 35, North Platte and Miranda Lee Neal, 29, North Platte

 

• Christopher James Cella, 39, Eustis NE and Heidi Lynn Zeller, 32,  Eustis NE

 

• Scott Wade Birrell, 21, North Platte and Martica Ann Johnson, 24, North Platte

 

• Douglas Eugene Seevers, 46, North Platte and Susan Lynne Chilcott, 52, North Platte

 

• Stephen Caleb Barkley, 21, North Platte and Stormi Lynn DeVoss, 20, Cheyenne WY

(AP) — Nebraska lawmakers are being urged yet again to help local governments lower their property taxes.

The calls for reform on Friday came during the final public-input hearing of the Legislature’s Tax Modernization Committee. Lawmakers are looking at changes to make the system simpler, competitive and more equitable.

Alvin Guenther, a retired educator from Dunbar, says his property tax bill doubled between 2008 and 2012 for two land parcels that he owns. Guenther criticized the state’s business tax incentives, saying they were enacted without clear goals.

John Cederberg, treasurer of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, says the best way to reduce property taxes is by growing Nebraska’s urban economy to increase the sales and income tax base.

West Point Mayor Marlene Johnson says the state should restore aid to cities.

(AP) — Anti-smoking advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase the state’s tobacco tax as part of their reforms to Nebraska’s tax system.

The American Cancer Society’s advocacy arm released a poll Friday that said 68 percent of likely voters in Nebraska support an increase, while 29 percent oppose it. The group will present its poll to the Legislature’s Tax Modernization Committee, which is meeting at the Capitol.

David Holmquist of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network says a tobacco tax increase would help reduce health care costs and discourage youths from smoking. Holmquist says lawmakers could use the revenue for property tax relief, or for smoking cessation programs.

Nebraska’s cigarette tax is 64 cents a pack, the 38th highest nationwide. The national average is $1.53 per pack.

(AP) — After more than a week in action, is President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul a success or a bust? It’s hard to say because there’s hardly any data.

The federal government hasn’t released comprehensive data on how many people have signed up for health insurance in the 36 states using federally run exchanges, the online marketplaces for comparing and buying insurance.

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Nebraska, which has about 50 Obamacare enrollees, said it had to stop enrollments from coming through automatically and hire temporary workers to contact customers to fix inaccuracies in submissions, according to the report.

In the 14 states running their own exchanges, it isn’t much better. For example, it’ll be mid-November before California says how many people signed up. In Oregon and Colorado, the official number is zero. In Minnesota, which embraced the Affordable Care Act, basic data won’t be released until next week.

As a result, a nation trying to determine winners and losers is finding it difficult to pass immediate judgment.

(AP) — A new study says college students play with their digital devices in class an average of 11 times a day.

More than 80 percent of the students admitted that their use of smart phones, tablets and laptops could interfere with their learning, according to the study by a University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor.

Associate broadcasting professor Bernard “Barney” McCoy surveyed 777 students in five states about their use of digital devices.

Nearly 86 percent of students said they were texting, 68 percent reported that they were checking email, 66 percent said they were using social networks and 38 percent said they were surfing the web. Eight percent said they were playing a game.

Students in the study came from universities in Nebraska, Iowa, North Carolina, Kansas and Mississippi.

(AP) — The Crane Trust is asking help in spotting whooping cranes as they migrate through Nebraska on their way to winter grounds in Texas.

The whooping crane is one of the rarest bird species in North America. It stands nearly 5 feet tall and has a wingspan of up to 7 feet.

Anyone spotting a whooping crane is asked to call the Crane Trust at 1-888-399-2824 to report key information: exact location of the cranes; number of cranes; time and date the cranes were observed; what the cranes were doing (feeding, resting or flying); if leg bands/transmitters were visible; if flying, in which direction.

The whooping cranes are protected under the Endangered Species Act.