Audit: Lottery owes for fete
California Lottery officials should repay $46,336 that was inappropriately spent on an employee celebration dinner last November, according to an audit released Wednesday by the State Controller's Office.
"Billed as an employee recognition and training event, the expenses actually went to entertainment, prizes and black-peppered prime rib dinners for Lottery employees, retirees and guests," Controller John Chiang said in a statement.
Nearly $30,000 was spent on the Nov. 8 event, intended to celebrate the lottery's $20 billion contribution to education. Besides a dinner and dessert, guests received silver-plated photo frames, and the lottery hired a disc jockey and photographer.
An additional $17,262 was spent on mock lottery games for entertainment. Among the costs were $5,000 paid to a former Big Spin host as master of ceremonies and $10,932 worth of prizes, including a Nintendo Wii, iPods and digital cameras.
Lottery Director Joan Borucki told the Senate Rules Committee during her confirmation hearing in February that she was "sorry ... embarrassed and ... angry with myself for letting this happen." But she told Chiang she would await an attorney general's opinion on the legality of employee recognition events before agreeing to repay the money.
"If the Attorney General's Office determines that these types of expenditures by the lottery are within its authority, the issues raised by the (Controller's Office) are moot," Borucki wrote in a response to the audit.
The audit also found the lottery commingled charitable contributions with public funds in making donations to the Poway Unified School District Fire Relief Fund and the North Sacramento Unified School District.
Chiang recommended the lottery find a way to reimburse the state for the full amount. The Controller's Office will complete an audit of credit cards held by lottery officials in April, as well as a review of office funds in May.
