Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout8A - 1999 Financial Report MEETING DATE: AGENDA #: PREPARED BY: AGENDA ITEM: JUNE 5, 2000 8A RALPH TESCHNER, FINANCE DIRECTOR CONSIDER APPROVAL OF 1999 ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT AND MANAGEMENT LETTER DISCUSSION: Councilmernbers were distributed a copy of the 1999 Financial Report as prepared by the certified public accountant firm of Abdo, Abdo, Eick and Meyers. The report was given to you directly to afford sufficient time to review the document before the June 5th meeting. The audit was conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards and represents an independent opinion of the financial results and status of the City of Prior Lake during the year of 1999. History On September 21, 1998 the City Council approved Resolution 98- 105 which authorized the engagement of the Abdo, Abdo and Eick Company to provide auditing services for the fiscal years of 1998, 1999 and 2000. The cost for their professional services to prepare the 1999 CAFR (comprehensive annual financial report) was approved in an amount of$10,885.00. Current Circumstances Contained within the financial report is a legal compliance audit which was performed to ensure compliance with Minnesota Statutes in the areas of; contracting and bidding, deposits and investments, conflicts of interest, public indebtedness and claims and disbursements. Also attached IS a Management Letter prepared by the auditors which provides highlights of the report as well as any applicable recommendations. According to the auditor's tests, the City has complied with the applicable legal provisions as they apply to the five main categories stated above. Also noted within their report on internal control is the fact that no matters involving internal control structure and operation were observed to contain material weaknesses as defined by GAS (Government Auditing Standards). The audit has been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principals. The primary results indicated within the 1999 audit are: 16200 E'i:I'tJ~grerJEf~EAB~c S.E.. Prior Lake. Minnesota 55372-1714 / Ph. (612) 447-4230 / Fax (612) 447-4245 ;'\" EQt.eM Oi'~)Orn:\[T\' E\::':"OYER. TIr "n 1.) Actual revenues of $7,601,069 (including transfers in) compared to budgeted revenues of$7,127,582 or 106.6% of projection. 2.) Operating expenditures were $7,080,634 compared to budgeted expenditures of7,127,582 or 99.3% of budget. 3.) Gross revenues exceeded expenditures in the amount of $520,435. This amount was reduced to $195,435, which automatically becomes part of the General Fund balance, by the following: a) $75,000 debt retirement of the old park bonds b) $100,000 appropriation to the Revolving Equipment Fund c) $150,000 appropriation to the Collector Street Fund. Each of these expenditure actions were authorized, by Council resolution, outside the scope of the general fund operating budget. The 1999 year-end General Fund balance increased to $2,449,988 which represents a reserve of 33.4% or $249,505 above the council recognized 30% threshold. The reserve growth occurred primarily because of four contributing factors. The first was careful expenditure of budgeted funds. The City Manager, Finance Director and City department and division supervisors expect that purchases are made only if needed, and adhere to this practice even if funds are available. The second occurrence is that the City received $89,293 for the sale of the Toronto A venue lot which the council did not program for a specific use and therefore became part of the surplus. This represented a one time revenue source. Third, building permits were up 6% and fourth, developers agreement revenue came in at more than $66,000 above projections. The last two revenue sources are highly elastic and are difficult to accurately anticipate. The Management Letter is intended to bring to the City Council's attention deficiencies or conditions recommended for improvement within the design or administration of the City's financial operations. A graphic summary of the City's results of operations within the General Fund depicting revenues and expenditures is included. Also, the auditors discuss the importance of maintaining an adequate fund balance for cash flow purposes and to establish overall long term financial strength. AL TERN A TIVES: The following alternatives are available to the City Council: 1. Accept 1999 Annual Financial Report and Management Letter as submitted. 2. Delay action according to specific Council reason. RECOMMENDATION: Staff would recommend approval of the management letter and the financial report for the fiscal year ended December 3 I, 1999 as submitted. A City Financial Reporting form, which is basically a condensed excerpt of the official document, is required to be H:\AUDlT\AUDAGEN.DOC RECOMMENDED MOTION: REVIEWED BY: Attachments: H.\AUDlT\AUDAGENDOC 'T"'-,r' -n submitted to the Office of the State Auditor by June 30, 2000 along with this report. Please feel free to contact Staff prior to the meeting if you have any questions. Steve McDonald of the firm Abdo, Abdo, Eick and Meyers will make a brief presentation regarding the report and management letter and respond to any questions the council may have. the 1999 Annual Financial Report and March 23, 2000 Certified Public Accountants & Consul/ilnts 7241 Ohms Lane Suite 200 Minneapolis, MN 55439 Honorable Mayor and City Council City of Prior Lake Prior Lake, Minnesota We have audited the general purpose fmancial statements of the City of Prior Lake for the year ended December 31, 1999 and have issued our report thereon dated March 23, 2000. Professional standards require that we provide you with the following information related to our audit. Our Responsibility under Generally Accepted Auditing Standards and Government Auditing Standards As stated in our engagement letter, our responsibility, as described by professional standards, is to plan and perform our audit to obtain reasonable-but not absolute-assurance that the fmancial statements are free of material misstatement and are fairly presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Because of the concept of reasonable assurance and because we did not perform a detailed examination of all transactions, there is a risk that material errors, fraud, or other illegal acts may exist and not be detected by us. As part of our audit, we considered the internal control of the City. Such considerations were solely for the purpose of determining our audit procedures and not to provide any assurance concerning such internal control. A material weakness is a reportable condition in which the design or operation of one or more of the internal control components does not reduce to a relatively low level the risk that errors or irregularities in amounts that would be material in relation to the fmancial statements being audited may occur and not be detected within a timely period by employees in the normal course of performing their assigned functions. Our consideration of internal control would not necessarily disclose all matters in internal control that might be reportable conditions and, accordingly, would not necessarily disclose all reportable conditions that are also considered to be a material weakness, as defmed above. We noted no matters involving the internal control over fmancial reporting and the City's operation that we consider to be a material weakness. As part of obtaining reasonable assurance about whether the [mancial statements are free of material misstatement, we performed tests of compliance with certain provisions of laws, regulations, contracts and grants. However, the objective of our tests was not to provide an opinion on compliance with such provisions. Significant Accounting Policies Management has the responsibility for selection and use of appropriate accounting policies. In accordance with the tenns of our engagement letter, we will advise management about the appropriateness of accounting policies and their application. The significant accounting policies used by the City are described in Note 1 to the general purpose fmandal statements. No new accounting policies were adopted and the application of existing policies was not changed during 1999. We noted no transactions entered into by the City during the year that were both significant and unusual, and of which-under professional standards-we are required to inform you, or transactions for which there is a lack of authoritative guidance or consensus, 612.835.9090 . Fax 612.835.3261 II IT City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Two Accounting Estimates Accounting estimates are an integral part of the general purpose fmancial statements prepared by management and are based on management's knowledge and experience about past and current events and assumptions about future events. Certain accounting estimates are particularly sensitive because of their significance to the general-purpose fmancial statements and because of the possibility that future events affecting them may differ significantly from those expected. Significant Audit Adjustments For purposes of this letter, professional standards defme a significant audit adjustment as a proposed correction of the general-purpose fmancial statements that, in our judgment, may not have been detected except through our auditing procedures, We proposed no material audit adjustments, Disagreements with Management For purposes of this letter, professional standards defme a disagreement with management as a matter, whether or not resolved to our satisfaction, concerning a fmancial accounting, reporting or auditing matter that could be significant to the general-purpose fmancial statements or the auditor's report, We are pleased to report that no such disagreements arose during the course of our audit. Consultations with Other Independent Accountants In some cases, management may decide to consult with other accountants about auditing and accounting matters, similar to obtaining a "second opinion" on certain situations. If a consultation involves application of an accounting principle to the City's general purpose fmancial statements or a determination of the type of auditor's opinion that may be expressed on those statements, our professional standards require the consulting accountant to check with us to determine that the consultant has all the relevant facts. To our knowledge, there were no such consultations with other accountants, Issues Discussed Prior to Retention of Independent Auditors We generally discuss a variety of matters, including the application of accounting principles and auditing standards, with management each year prior to retention as the City's auditors. However, these discussions occurred in the normal course of our professional relationship and our responses were not a condition to our retention, Difficulties Encountered in Performing the Audit We encountered no difficulties in dealing with management in performing our audit. Other Matters The following are items that came to our attention during the audit that we feel should be noted: Financial Position and Results of Operations General Fund The General Fund fund balance increased $195,435 to $2,449,988 at December 31, 1999, Overall, revenue was $473,487 above budget and expenditures were below budget by $48,011, Transfers out totaled $1,212,148, We nomJally recommend a minimum fund balance reserve around 40 to 45% of planned expenditures. This provides adequate working capital until major revenue sources are received in July, The current year fund balance is 33.08% of 1999 expenditures which is $249,505 above the City's recognized 30% threshold for fund balance reserve, The fund balance in relation to expenditures for the last three years follows: Fund Balance Expenditures as a Percent of Fund and Expenditures Balance Transfers out and Transfers 1999 $ 2,449,988 $ 7,405,634 33.08% 1998 2,254,553 6,676,814 33.77 1997 1,815,122 6,490,589 27.96 City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Three Fund balance as a percent of expenditures ~._-----~------------~----~-----_._-_._-- oF, 40.00% / ./ ./ / 20.00% 0.00% 1997 1998 1999 Some of the purposes and benefits of maintaining an adequate fund balance are as follows: Purposes and Benefits Expenditures are incurred somewhat evenly throughout the year. However, currently, property tax and state aid revenues are not received until the second half of the year. An adequate fund balance will provide the cash flow required to finance the General Fund expenditures. The City is vulnerable to legislative actions at the State and Federal level. Recent years have seen the State continually adjusting the local government aid and property tax credit formulas as well as implementing levy limits. An adequate fund balance will provide a temporary buffer against those aid adjustments and levy limits, Expenditures not anticipated at the time the annual budget was adopted may need immediate Council action. These may include capital outlay replacement, lawsuits and other items. An adequate fund balance will provide the financing needed for such expenditures. A strong fund balance will assist the City in maintaining or improving its bond rating. . 11 City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Four A summary of 1999 General Fund revenue and expenditures is as follows: Budget Variance - Favorable (Unfavorable) Actual Revenue Expenditures and other financing uses $ 6,927,582 (6,927,582) $ 473,487 (278.052 ) $ 7,401,069 (7,205,634 ) Excess (Deficiency) of Revenue Over Expenditures $ 195,435 2,254,553 $ 2.449,988 $ 195.435 Fund Balance, January 1 Fund Balance, December 31 A comparison between 1999 and 1998 revenue is presented below: Percent Increase of (Decrease) Revenue Source 1999 Total 1998 From 1998 Property Taxes $ 3,907,775 51.41 % $ 3,690,789 $ 216,986 Licenses and Permits 480,713 6.32 453,827 26,886 Intergovernmental 1,826,040 24.02 1,820,329 5,711 Charges for Services 739,662 9,73 667,507 72,155 Fines and Forfeits 110,309 1.45 95,024 15,285 Other Revenue 239,838 3,16 83,573 156,265 Interest 96,732 1.27 105,196 (8,464 ) Transfers 200,000 2,64 200,000 Total Revenue $ 7,601.069 100,00% $ 7.116.245 $ 484,824 A graphical presentation of 1999 revenue totals follows: 1999 Revenue Other Revenue 3.]6% Taxes 51.4]% Interest 1.27% Transfers 2.64% Fines ].45% Licenses 6.32% Intergovernmental 24.02% Charges for services 9.73% City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Five A comparison between 1999 and 1998 expenditures is presented below: Percent Increase of (Decrease) Programs 1999 Total 1998 From 1998 General Government $1,553,280 20.97% $1,401,320 $ 151,960 Public Safety Police 1,604,751 21.67 1,561,072 43,679 Fire 248,308 3,35 204,277 44,03l Other 271,026 3.66 314,152 (43,126) Public Works 839,384 11.33 794,548 44,836 Culture and Recreation 1,135,158 15.33 1,030,345 104,813 Other 447,866 6.05 379,173 68,693 Capital Outlay 93,713 1.27 137,463 (43,750) Transfers to Other Funds 1,212,148 16.37 854,464 357,684 Total Expenditures $7.405.634 lQ.Q.Q.2 % $6,676,814 $ 728.820 A graphical presentation of 1999 expenditures totals by program follows: 1999 Expenditures Transfers out 16.37% Capital outlay 1.27% Other 6.05% General government 20.97% Culture and recreation 15.33% Public works 11.33% The major line item increase occurred in the Transfers to Other Funds category and is attributed to the following three actions: 1) $75,000 accelerated debt amortization (bond call) of outstanding 0,0. Park Bond issues, 2) Appropriation by council resolution of$100,000 to Revolving Equipment Fund as a result ofFEMA depreciation aid factor. 3) Appropriation by council resolution of $150,000 to Collector Street Fund for future intersection upgrades along Highway 13. . 11 City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Six Special Revenue Funds Special revenue funds are used to account for revenue that is to be used for a specific purpose. A summary of the special revenue funds and fund balances is shown below: Total Fund Balance Increase 1999 1998 (Decrease ) $ 531,782 $ 244,511 $ 287,271 209,739 207,007 2,732 60,841 56,830 4,011 4,912 4,912 93,937 18,746 75,191 39,610 39.610 $ 940.821 $ 527.094 $ 413.727 Capital Park Severance Compensation EDC Revolving Loan Revolving Loan DAG Cable Franchise Debt Service Funds The debt service funds are used to account for the resources accumulated to repay bond principal and interest. The resources generally consist of special assessments levied against benefiting properties, general property taxes or tax increments. All bonds appear to have adequate resources at year end to pay their obligations. The table below summarizes the obligations outstanding, Total Total Bonds Cash Deposits Assets Outstanding Fire Hall Bonds $ 1,539,495 $ 1,539,495 $ 3,265,000 Sand Point 231,342 233,868 35,000 North Shore 1,262,499 2,251,645 1,225,250 Water Tower 502,309 502,309 659,750 Business Office Park (26%) 659,714 672,254 405,600 Business Office Park (74%) 223,981 329,815 1,154,400 Prior South 102,541 161,671 425,000 Ridgemount 30,064 102,454 620,000 Water Rev. PW Bldg. 1,949,400 1,949,400 3,815,000 Northwood 184,003 330,559 705,000 Pike Lake 107,755 308,894 865,000 Park Referendum 7,040,988 7,040,988 14,790,000 Duluth 238,752 534,856 1,150,000 Candy Cove 157.726 391.022 1 ,025.000 Total $ 14,230.569 $ 16.349.230 $ 30.140.000 City of Prior Lake March 23,2000 Page Seven Capital Project Funds The following funds account for major capital projects: Fund Fund Balance Balance Increase 12/31/99 12/31/98 (Decrease ) Tax Increment $ 151,940 $ 114,402 $ 37,538 Revolving Equipment 931,296 969,182 (37,886) Building 63,538 63,538 Construction 1,181,293 1,100,883 80,410 Trunk Reserve 1,833,446 1,764,364 69,082 Collector Street 1,502,993 1,194,595 308,398 Park Referendum 1,977,410 6,864,333 (4,886,923 ) Tax Increment 2-1 Keyland 4,712 106,086 (101,374 ) Tax Increment 2-2 Becker 24,096 34,866 (10,770) Tax Increment 2-3 AmerIMetro 7,030 30,634 (23,604 ) Tax Increment 2-4 Conunercial 138,207 111,207 27,000 Tax Increment 2-5 E,M. Prod. 8,706 71,464 (62,758) Tax Increment 2-6 NBC 26,754 32,976 (6,222 ) Tax Increment 2-7 Award Prin. 1,789 31,587 (29,798) Tax Increment 2-8 D Hansen 1.892 (340 ) 2.232 Total $ 7.855.102 $ 12.426,239 $ (4 571.137) Enterprise Funds The Water and Sewer Utility and Storm Water Utility Funds are accounted for in separate enterprise funds and a summary of each follows. Water and Sewer Utility Fund The Water and Sewer Utility Fund results of operations for the past two years are as follows: Percent of Percent of Total Total 1999 Revenue 1998 Revenue Operating revenue Sewer charges $1,492,977 58,1% $ 1,305,051 58.4% Water charges 583,385 22.7 523,827 23.4 Other 493.100 19.2 405.899 ~ Total operating revenue 2,569,462 100.0 2,234,777 100.0 Total expenses 1,851.361 72.1 1,768,697 -lil Operating income $ 718.101 27.9% $ 466.080 12.5% Cash balance at year end $3,004.276 $ 2.311.190 The current cash balance of$3,004,276 is 162% of 1999 expenses. This is an increase of$693,086 from 1998. The cash balance is needed to provide working capital and major capital needs. The current margins appear to be generating sufficient cash flow. . 11 City of Prior Lake March 23,2000 Page Eight Storm Water Utility The Storm Water Utility results of operations for the past two years are as follows: Percent of Percent of 1999 Revenue 1998 Revenue Total revenue $ 163,286 100.0% $ 126,013 100.0% Total expenses 237.705 145,6% 110,315 ~% Operating income (loss) $ (74.419) ~%) $ 15,698 12.5% Cash balance at year end $ 86,188 $ 171.293 The large increase in expenses came in the repair period maintenance category of expenses. Although the cash balance appears adequate, the City should always evaluate operations annually to ensure rates are sufficient. Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement No. 34, Basic Financial Statements - and Management's Discussion and Analysis - for State and Local Governments GASB Statement No, 34 is the result of an almost decade long effort by GASB to reexamine the fmancial reporting model for state and local governments. The most notable change is the presentation of a set of highly aggregated, "full accrual" fmancial statements. At the same time, however, the Statement retains many familiar features of current governmental fmancial reporting, in particular fund-based fmancial statements. State and local governmental fmancial statement preparers and auditors will need to comprehend and implement a vast number of changes in accounting and fmancial reporting, They will have to explain those changes to persons who are unfamiliar with the particulars of accounting, much less the unique area of state and local governmental accounting. The following are some specific areas that need to be addressed with the implementation of this new statement: Timeline GASB Statement No, 34 is effective in three phases based on the total annual revenues of the primary government's governmental and proprietary funds, although earlier application is encouraged. For this purpose, revenues include all revenues except for other fmancing sources and certain extraordinary items. Based on this calculation, the City is considered to be phase 2. Therefore, the City is required to implement GASB Statement No, 34 for the calendar year ending 2003, Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) MD&A gives an objective and easily readable analysis of a government's fmancial activities based on currently known facts, decisions, or conditions. It presents short and long-term analyses of the government's activities, compares current- year results with those of the prior year, and discusses the positive and negative aspects of that comparison. Government-wide Financial Statements The government-wide fmancial statements are (1) a statement of net assets and (2) a statement of activities, The statement of net assets presents the government's fmancial position at a point in time (like a balance sheet does); the statement of activities presents its activities during a period (like an operating statement does). These statements present highly aggregated information for the overall government; they do not display individual funds or fund types. They also present fmancial information in separate rows and columns for the (1) primary government's aggregate governmental activities, (2) primary government's aggregate business-type activities, (3) total primary government, and (4) discretely presented component units, City of Prior Lake March 23, 2000 Page Nine Capital Assets Capital assets are tangible and intangible assets that are used in operations that have initial useful lives longer than one year. They include land and improvements, easements, buildings and improvements, equipment, and works of art and historical treasures. Capital assets also include infrastructure assets - normally stationary capital assets that can be preserved for significantly greater number of years than most capital assets. Infrastructure assets include roads, bridges and tunnels; water, sewer and drainage systems; dams; lighting systems; and buildings that are an ancillary part of a network of infrastructure assets, Capital assets are reported in the statement of net assets at historical cost (or estimated fair value, if donated) and net of accumulated depreciation, They are depreciated in the statement of activities over their estimated useful lives. Infrastructure Assets GASB Statement No. 34 applies prospectively to all general infrastructure assets beginning at the effective dates of the Statement (or earlier, if the statement is implemented earlier). Governments are also encouraged to apply the Statement retroactively to all existing major general infrastructure assets at that time. However, phase 1,2 governments need not retroactively report those assets until calendar year 2006, 2007 - four years after their required implementation of Statement No. 34. Phase 3 governments are encouraged but not required to report major general infrastructure assets retroactively. If there are inadequate records of the actual historical cost of existing general infrastructure assets, governments can estimate historical cost. They also may limit retroactive application to only those major general infrastructure assets that were acquired or significantly reconstructed, or that received significant improvements, in fiscal years ending after June 30, 1980. The above gives you some general information on GASB Statement No. 34 implementation. We intend to educate and work with all of our clients in developing a plan to implement this new statement, As a result of implementing this statement, there will no doubt be additional fees for our services. These expected increases will most likely result from additional time spent in the areas of (1) training, (2) account structure modifications to provide information necessary to prepare fmancial statements, (3) accounting for fixed assets, infrastructure assets and related depreciation, and (4) fmancial statement preparation. The more that the City staff can do in the areas of fixed asset accounting and proper account structure will help in reducing these costs, We will help you as much as possible to accomplish this. Capitalization policy Currently, the City records all assets above $500 as fixed assets. Based on the level of operations, we have recommended the City should consider raising the limit to $2,000. Because so many smaller items from $500 to $2,000 have a relatively short life, the City would not be sacrificing any necessary documentation. Staff concurs and will be implementing this change in 2000. * * * * * This report is intended solely for the use of management and council. The comments and recommendations in the report are purely constructive in nature, and should be read in this context. Our audit would not necessarily disclose all weaknesses in the system because it was based on selected tests of the accounting records and related data. If you have any questions or wish to discuss any of the items contained in this letter, please feel free to contact us at your convenience. We wish to thank you for the opportunity to be of service and for the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by your staff. Olnlo, ~J7J'J !lJlel1ers J LLP ABDO, ABDO, EICK & MEYERS, Y..LP Certified Public Accountants March 23,2000 Minneapolis, Minnesota II II {JM *;1UJffl tM V~ 06 FRANK BOYLES May 19, 2000 TO: MAYOR AND COUNCILMEMBERS SUBJECT: Annual Financial Report Attached you will find the Annual Financial Report for the City for the year ending December 31, 1999. This item is scheduled for consideration at your June 5, 2000 regular meeting. Due to the length of the report, I am distributing it prior to the agenda package so that you will have ample time to review the material. If you have any questions regarding the report, please feel free to call Ralph directly at 447- 9841. 16200 Eagle Creek Ave. S.L Prior Lake. Minnesota .55372-1714 / Ph. (6l2i 447-4230 / Fax (612) 447-4245 c\'. [QI. 'AL OPPC,~i.TI.',,[TY E",IPU JYU,