Wisconsin Lottery: Wisconsin lottery ticket sales increase $7.4 million
Wisconsin lottery ticket sales increased $7.4 million in the last fiscal year, helping deliver more than $10 million in new property tax relief, according to a state audit released Thursday.
Total ticket sales for the year that ended June 30, 2003, were $435 million, up from $427.6 million the year before, the Legislative Audit Bureau report said. More sales of instant game tickets accounted for the increase, the audit reported.
Lottery credits on property tax bills statewide increased 8.9 percent to $129.6 million from $119 million. The credits fulfill a commitment the state made to use some lottery proceeds for property tax relief when voters agreed to create a state lottery in 1987.
Lottery spokesman Andrew Bohage said more property tax relief could be on the way next year. As of May 22, the lottery had generated $437 million, about $2 million more than last year.
"Depending on how the month of June shakes out, we could be looking at one of the best years the lottery has had in a long time, at least since the mid-1990s," Bohage said.
He attributed increased sales to variations in scratch ticket games that allow people to buy $1, $2, $5 and $10 tickets. People seem to like that flexibility, he said.
The audit found that $1 ticket sales dropped 13.6 percent, but sales of $2 tickets increased 9.4 percent; sales of $3 tickets increased by 20.5 percent and sales of $5 tickets increased by 30.7 percent.
Online ticket sales, however, dipped $3.8 million. Bohage said many of the lottery's online games have largely stagnated because they have been around for a long time.
Pick 3 saw a decrease of $900,000 in online sales while Pick 4 held at $9.6 million in sales in each year in the audit.
"They're not games that draw new players. They're probably the equivalent of the $1 scratch ticket. They're not particularly innovative," Bohage said.
Other audit findings included:
Lottery operating expenses increased to $312.7 million from $305 million, largely because of $6.9 million more in prize payouts tied to more ticket sales.
People bought $8.5 million worth of tickets for Badger 5, an online game that replaced City Picks in early 2003. Badger 5 did substantially better than City Picks, which generated $2.3 million the year before.
The lottery paid out $248.5 million in prizes for the year that ended June 30, 2003, compared with $241.5 million the year before.