Financial Questions
What is the purpose of a financial report?
Can I get help to complete my financial report?
Why have the financial reports changed?
Do we need to open one bank account for Bingo and another bank account for Breakopen?
Can money be transferred from the lottery bank account to the general account?
Can I apply for an exemption to this rule?
My organization has an Annual Financial Statement done every year by our Audit Committee. Should I send this report to the MGCC along with the other reporting we do?
Can our organization put funds from our lottery account into a Term Deposit?
The financial reports all ask for the Presidents signature. What if the President is away?
Our organization hasn't operated at all for several months. Do we still have to submit a financial report?
Last week we had a bingo event that lost $100. We had to use some of our float in order to pay out all our prizes. How do we put the $100 back into our float?
I've written the cheque to top up our float. Now how do I report this on the financial report?
Answers
What is the purpose of a financial report?
Financial reports ensure that the lottery funds are being used for approved purposes. They also help show how well an organization is operating their licensed activity, including following the terms and conditions of their licence.
Can I get help to complete my financial report?
A member of the Audit or Inspections department can help you with your financial report. Please call us (in Winnipeg) at 954-9400 or toll free at
1-800-782-0363, to speak to an auditor or an inspector.
Why have the financial reports changed?
The financial reports change for various reasons. When we make a change we try to do so to improve financial reporting. For example, some licensees have asked for more space to report information; in some cases, we have identified information that is needed on a more frequent basis; and in other cases a new idea has been implemented to make the completion of the reports easier.
Do we need to open one bank account for Bingo and another bank account for Breakopen?
No, only one bank account is needed. However, you must use separate deposit slips for Bingo and Breakopen deposits, so that we can clearly identify the deposits on the bank statement as being either Bingo or Breakopen deposits. This will also help your organization to track its revenue.
Can money be transferred from the lottery bank account to the general account?
Your organization should keep separate accounts, and track the money separately. If the lottery money is transferred to another bank account, it is difficult to track the use of lottery money - this can make your financial reporting more difficult.
Can I apply for an exemption to this rule?
Yes, but exemption approval is not guaranteed. Exemption requests are considered on an individual basis, and will include a review of your organization's past financial reporting practices. If the request is granted, increased reporting requirements will be imposed which include the submission of an independent Audited Financial Statement.
My organization has an Annual Financial Statement done every year by our Audit Committee. Should I send this report to the MGCC along with the other reporting we do?
You only need to send the MGCC financial reports provided with your licence, unless you have entered into an agreement with us that requires additional reporting. In the case of additional reporting, the MGCC only accepts Annual Audited Financial Statements that are prepared and signed by a designated accountant who is not a member of the organization.
Can our organization put funds from our lottery account into a Term Deposit?
Yes, but you must continue to report these investments on your financial reports. Once these investments reach maturity, unless they are renewed, they must be re-deposited to your lottery bank account, along with any interest that has been earned.
The financial reports all ask for the Presidents signature. What if the President is away?
If the President is away the designated authority in your organization may sign the report in the space provided for the President. This usually means the Vice President or another executive member.
Our organization hasn't operated at all for several months. Do we still have to submit a financial report?
Yes. While there will be no sales to report, there may be cheques that were written during this time. There are often service charges and interest credits that have occurred in the lottery account, and this activity should be reported as well.
Last week we had a bingo event that lost $100. We had to use some of our float in order to pay out all our prizes. How do we put the $100 back into our float?
The preferred method of replenishing or topping up the float is to write a cheque on the lottery bank account for the amount that you need. You should avoid holding back $100 from the next event in order to make up the float in case your next event does not make enough profit to allow the full amount to be replaced.
I've written the cheque to top up our float. Now how do I report this on the financial report?
The only difference between this event and any other is that there is no deposit amount. In the "Calculated Deposit" column on page 1, you will be showing your "Calculated Loss". Also, instead of an "Actual Deposit" you will record an "Actual Withdrawal", which is the amount of the cheque that you wrote to top up the float. By the way, this cheque should not be recorded anywhere else on the financial report. If you record it on the cheque register, your report will not balance.
We encourage you to
contact us anytime for assistance by
calling toll free
1-800-782-0363
or email us at audit@mgcc.mb.ca
