State Lottery Income is Down

Unemployment, the struggling economy are blamed for decrease but many continue to play daily.

Tony Valdivia stopped at the Open Pantry in Fox Point this week for 20-ounce Sprite, a bag of chips and his daily Fire 'N' Dice lottery ticket. "I get one here or in Waukegan, wherever I happen to be," said Valdivia, a landscaper. "I won $1,000 once." While a kitty like that is enough to make anyone purr, sales of lottery tickets tanked with the economy, according to state officials. The Wisconsin Department of Revenue reported nearly $481 million in gross sales in fiscal year that ended June 30, 2010, up slightly from the previous year. But the number was still down almost 5.5 percent from 2006. That comes as no surprise Roger Breunig, the owner of the Flightline Amoco, N71W13161 Appleton Ave., in Brookfield. "We've only had the lottery …

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