COLUMBIA, SC (August 25, 2008) – The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to the South Carolina Education Lottery (SCEL) by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR). The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government entity and its management.
This is the third consecutive year SCEL has been acknowledged for producing a first-class CAFR.
SCEL’s Controller Uvette Pope-Rogers, CPA received the Award of Financial Reporting Achievement on behalf of the Lottery for preparing the award-winning CAFR. “The South Carolina Education Lottery strives to provide the public with clear and concise financial information,” said Pope-Rogers. “It is an honor to receive the GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for a third year in a row.”
The CAFR has been judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program including demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to clearly communicate the organization’s financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR.
The GFOA is a nonprofit, professional association serving approximately 17,000 government finance professionals with offices in Chicago, IL, and Washington, D.C.
When SCEL closed its books for FY 2007-08, more than $266 million was transferred to the Education Lottery Account (ELA) surpassing the revenue goal set by the Board of Economic Advisors by over $13 million. Since 2002, gross lottery sales have exceeded $6.1 billion, of which sixty percent has been paid to lottery winners in the form of prizes.
###
Pictures and Interviews are available upon request.
For More Information Contact:
Julie E. Huffman
SCEL Beneficiary Communications Coordinator
Office: (803) 737-2574
Fax: (803) 737-2893
Cell: (803) 667-2848
Email: Julie.huffman@sclot.com
1105