4.4. SR 03-16-1998ity of
MEMORANDUM
Item ~.4
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
SUBJECT:
Mayor & City Council
Pat Klaers, City Ad ~ ' 's~~r
March 9, 1998 ~/~/
GFOA Finance Award
It is with great pleasure that I notify the City Council that the City of Elk River has
received the Certificate of Achievement (COA) for Excellence in Financial Reporting
for the 1996 Fiscal Year. The COA plaque acknowledging this award will be
received in about two months. Assistant City Administrator Lori Johnson is the
individual that is primarily responsible for having the city earn this certificate,
however, this achievement could not have obtained without the full support and
work of the finance department.
The COA is a prestigious national award recognizing conformance with the highest
standards for preparation of state and local government financial reports. In order
to be awarded a COA, the governmental unit must publish an easily readable and
efficiently organized Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) whose
components conform to program standards. The CAFR must satisfy both generally
accepted accounting principles and applicable legal requirements. The COA is valid
for a one year period. The City of Elk River has received the COA eight (8)
consecutive years ending December 31, 1996.
Attached is some information relating to the COA. The attachments include a letter
to the Mayor, a certificate, a news release, and some page from the booklet that was
provided to the city. It is interesting to note that in 1988, of the approximately 850
cities in Minnesota, only 48 municipalities received this award. In 1996, the City of
Elk River is one of 76 communities to receive this award. Accordingly the
importance of achieving the COA has been emphasized throughout Minnesota as
more and more communities are striving to be in compliance with GFOA standards.
This item is on the agenda as information only and no action is necessary from the
City Council except for acknowledgement of receiving this award. Lori Johnson will
be in attendance at this meeting to answer questions. A "photo opportunity" will
hopefully take place once the plaque has been received.
\\elkriver\sys\shrdoc\councfl\gfoa.doe
13065 Orono Parkway · P.O. Box 490 · Elk River, MN 55330 · TDD & Phone: (612) 441-7420 · Fax: (612) 441-7425
GOVERNMENT FINANCE
OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
180 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 800, Chicago, Illinois 60601
312/977-9700 · Fax: 312/977-4806
February 27, 1998
The Honorable Henry Duitsman
Mayor
City of Elk River
P.O. Box 490
Elk River, Minnesota 55330
Dear Mayor Duitsman:
We are pleased to notify you that Your comprehensive annual finan-
cial report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 qualifies
for a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial
Reporting. The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of
recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting,
and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a
government and its management.
When a Certificate of Achievement is awarded to a government, an
Award of Financial Reporting Achievement is also presented to the
individual designated by the government as primarily responsible
for its having earned the certificate. Enclosed is an Award of
Financial Reporting Achievement for: Lori Johnson,
Finance Director.
The Certificate of Achievement plaque will be shipped under sepa-
rate cover in about eight weeks. We hope that you will arrange for
a formal presentation of the Certificate and Award of Financial
Reporting Achievement, and that apPropriate publicity will be
given to this notable achievement. To assist with this, a sample
news release and the 1996 Certificate Program results are enclosed.
We hope that your example will encourage other government offi-
cials in their efforts to achieve and maintain an appropriate
standard of excellence in financial reporting.
Sincerely,
GOVERNMENT FINANCE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
Director/Technical Services Center
SJG/kas
Enclosures
WASHINGTON OFFICE
1750 K Street, N.W., Suite 650, Washington, DC 20006
202/429-2750 · Fax: 202/429-2755
The Govemment Finance Officers Association
of the United States and Canada
presefits this
AWARD OF FINANCIAL REPORTING ACHIEVEMENT
Lori Johnson
Finance Director
City of Elk River, Minnesota
The Award of Financial Reporting Achievement is presented by the Government
Finance Officers Association to those individuals who have been instrumental in their
government unit achieving a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial
Reporting. A Certificate of Achievement is presented to those government units whose
annual fi nancial reports are judged to adhere to program standards and represents the
highest award i ri government fi na ncial reporting.
Executive Director
Date
February 27, 1998
GOVERNMENT FINANCE
OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
180 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 800, Chicago, Illinois 60601
312/977-9700 · Fax: 312/977-4806
February 27, 1998
For information contact:
NEWS RELEASE Stephen Gauthier (312) 977-9700
(Chicago)--The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Finan-
cial Reporting has been awarded to: City of Elk River, MN,
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 finan-
cial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant
accomplishment by a government and'its management.
An Award of Financial Reporting Achievement has been awarded
to the individual designated as primarily responsible for
preparing the award-winning CAFR. This has been presented to:
Lori Johnson, Finance Director
The CAFR has been judged by an impartial panel to meet the
high standards of the program including demonstrating a construc-
tive "spirit of full disclosure" to clearly communicate its
financial story and motivate potential users and user groups
to read the CAFR.
The GFOA is a nonprofit professional association serving
12,625 government finance professionals with offices in Chicago,
Illinois, and Washington, D.C.
- 30 -
WASHINGTON OFFICE
1750 K Street, N.W., Suite 650, Washington, DC 20006
202/429-2750 · Fax: 202/429-2755
CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT FOR EXCELLENCE
IN FINANCIAL REPORTING
1996 RESULTS
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial
Reporting (Certificate of Achievement) is an award designed to
recognize and encourage excellence in financial reporting by state
and local governments. The attainment of a Certificate of
Achievement represents a significant accomplishment for a
government and its management.
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial
Reporting Program (Certificate Program) was established by the
Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) in 1945.
Currently, the GFOA is celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the
Certificate Program. The GFOA instituted the program to
encourage all government units to prepare and publish an easily
readable and understandable comprehensive annual financial report
(CAFR) covering all funds and financial transactions of the
government during the fiscal year. The GFOA believes that
governments have a special responsibility to provide the public
with a fair presentation of their financial affairs. CAFRs go beyond
the requirements of generally accepted accounting principles
(GAAP) to provide the many users of government financial
statements with a wide variety of information useful in evaluating
the financial condition ora government.
,'o be eligible for a Certificate of Achievement, a report must be
the published CAFR of a unit ofgovemment, a college, a university
or a public employee retirement system. Eligible CAFRs must
include general purpose financial statements presented in
conformity with GAAP. These repons are also required to have
been audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing
standards, with the auditor taking at least "in relation to"
responsibility for combining, individual fund and account
group presentations. To earn a Certificate of Achievement, a
CAFR should give a clear and thorough view of the government's
finances. Award-winning reports should enhance the reader's
understanding of the information required by GAAP for fair
presentation of the financial statements, be efficiently organized
and adhere to certain generally accepted terminology and
formatting conventions. The Certificate Program provides
participants with extensive technical reference material on
governmental accounting and financial reporting theory. This
~naterial provides finance officials with the tools they need to
improve their financial reporting techniques.
Benefits of the Certificate of Achievement review. The growth in the
Certificate Program during its first fifty years has been
phenomenal. Based on recent trends, substantial growth is
anticipated to continue. More and more governments are recog-
nizing the benefits and significance of a program review. Some of
the benefits likely to be realized by a government unit which
submits its CAFR to the Certificate Program's review process
aclu&:
Education:
Government units participating in the Certificate
Program are provided with extensive technical
accounting and financial reporting reference
materials. Officials submitting CAFRs to the
Certificate Program review process also are
provided with a confidential list of detailed
comments and suggestions for improving their
financial reporting techniques.
Recognition:
The Certificate of Achievement is a nationally
recognized award, and its attainment represents
a significant accomplishment by a government
unit and its management.
Securities
Marketing A id:
Repons qualifying for a Certificate of Achieve-
ment provide a detailed vehicle by which market
analysts, investors, potential investors and others
may assess the relative attractiveness of a
government unit's securities compared to
alternative investment opportunities.
Clarity:
CAFRs satisfying the Certificate Program's
requirements are likely to be free of ambiguities
and potentially misleading presentations.
Comparability:
Since CAFRs qualifying for a Certificate of
Achievement employ standardized terminology
and formatting conventions, comparisons from
one year to the next and among different
government units are facilitated.
Completeness:
The financial statements, supporting schedules,
statistical tables and narrative explanations
required for a Certificate of Achievement help to
assure that all fiscal data are presented that are
needed by the many persons and groups with a
legitimate interest in the financial affairs of a
government unit. These groups include gov-
erning boards, investors and creditors, grantor
resource providers, taxpayers and others.
To participate in the Certificate Program, government units must
complete an application form and submit three copies of their
CAFR, with the appropriate fee, to the GFOA for review by the
Certificate Program's Special Review Committee. Applications can
be obtained from the GFOA's Certificate Program staff in Chicago
(312/977-9700). Submissions must be postmarked within six
months of the government's fiscal year end.
The following list identifies all of the governments that were
successful in obtaining a Certificate of Achievement for CAFRs
with fiscal years that ended in 1995. The governments currently
holding certificates that have been recognized the most times in
each state or jurisdiction are italicized and listed first.
MINNESOTA
Bloomington (23 years)
Rochester (23 years)
Albert Lea
Anoka
Anoka County
Austin
Blaine
Blue Earth County
Brainerd
Breckenridge
Brooklyn Center
Brooklyn Park
Bumsville
Chanhassen
Chaska
Columbia Heights
Coon Rapids
Cottage Grove
C,~,~tal
i ,ta County
Deephaven
Detroit Lakes
Duluth
Eagan
East Grand Forks
Eden Prairie
Elk River
Fairmont
Falcon Heights
Faribauit
Fergus Falls
Fridley
Golden Valley
Goodview
Grand Rapids
Hennepin County
Hopkins
Hugo
Inver Grove Heights
Lakeville
Lino Lakes
Luveme
Mahtomedi
Mankato
Maple Grove
Maplewood
Metropolitan Council of the Twin
Cities Area
Minneapolis
Minneapolis Employees'
Retirement Fund
Minneapolis Fire Department
Relief Association
Minneapolis Library Board
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan
Airports Commission
Minnesota Public Employees'
Retirement Association
Minnesota State Retirement System
Minnetonka
Moorhead
Mora
Morris
Mound
Mounds View
New Brighton
New Hope
New Ulm
North Mankato
North Saint Paul
Oakdale
Olmsted County
Orono
Plymouth
Ramsey
Ramsey County
Rice County
Richfield
Robbinsdale
Roseville
Saint Cloud
Saint Louis County
Saint Louis Park
Saint Paul
Saint Paul Housing and
Redevelopment Authority
Shakopee
Sherbume County
Shoreview
Shorewood
State of Minnesota
Steams County
Stiilwater
Suburban Hennepin Regional
Park District
Wadena
Waseca
Washington County
Wayzata
West Saint Paul
Western Lake Superior Sanitary
District
White Bear Lake
Winona
Woodbury
Worthington
Reports Submitted and Certificates Awarded For Fiscal Years Ended in 1995, 1994 and 1993
Special Review Committee and Members During Years Ending December 31, 1996 and 1995
FY 95 Reports
Processed in 1996
FY 94 Reports FY 93 Reports SRC SRC
Processed in 1995 Processed in 1994 1996 1995
Submissions Awards Submissions Awards Submissions Awards Members Members
Alabama 15 12 13 12 13 12 1 4
Alaska 24 21 22 21 18 18 2 2
American Samoa I I 1 1 1 1 0 0
Arizona 93 92 84 82 82 80 17 16
Arkansas 8 7 6 6 6 6 2 2
California 247 236 227 220 218 211 39 58
Colorado 89 87 88 85 83 82 17 23
Connecticut 46 46 41 40 39 39 10 9
Delaware 6 5 4 3 3 3 2 4
District of Columbia 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 7
Florida 188 184 185 181 172 170 64 88
Georgia 75 71 67 65 60 60 13 22
Hawaii 6 6 6 6 6 6 I 1
Idaho ! 1 10 11 10 10 9 2 2
Illinois 177 175 168 162 154 150 37 48
Indiana 22 22 23 22 23 21 7 13
Iowa 33 33 31 31 30 27 7 9
Kansas 33 30 32 32 28 26 5 3
Kentucky 17 17 18 16 15 15 2 3
Louisiana 36 34 31 29 28 28 11 I 1
Maine 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 2
Maryland 34 34 34 32 31 30 14 19
Massachusetts 8 7 6 4 4 4 5 7
Michigan 69 64 66 62 59 56 10 14
Minnesota 101 98 97 96 96 93 26 37
MissiSsippi 7 5 6 ..... 6 6 ........ 5 0 0
Missouri 64 60 60 56 53 $2 15 16
Montana i I 10 8 8 8 7 5 8
Nebraska 7 7 7 7 7 7 5 5
Nevada 21 21 22 21 21 21 8 8
New Hampshire 5 5 4 3 3 3 3 4
New Jersey 4 4 5 4 4 4 2 4
New Mexico 6 5 7 6 5 5 0 1
New York 51 43 52 43 43 40 22 26
North Carolina 132 125 119 111 107 I00 19 20
North Dakota 7 7 7 6 5 5 6 8
Ohio 195 191 185 181 178 172 56 60
Oklahoma 23 19 21 21 22 20 5 8
Oregon 95 93 95 91 94 93 15 21
Pennsylvania 51 48 48 43 44 43 16 21
Puerto Rico 5 4 I I 0 0 I 1
Rhode Island 6 5 6 5 6 6 4 6
South Carolina 54 49 48 45 49 42 7 13
South Dakota 5 5 5 4 4 4 0 0
Tennessee 31 30 26 25 26 24 7 9
Texas 275 265 265 257 26 ! 249 49 60
Utah 29 29 28 28 28 26 3 8
Vermont 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Virginia 81 81 77 75 72 70 18 23
Washington 56 5 i 55 51 52 45 15 22
West Virginia 5 5 4 3 3 2 3 5
Wisconsin 35 34 33 32 32 30 9 10
Wyoming 12 I 1 11 11 11 11 5 6
TOTAL 2619 2510 2473 2369 ~330 2240 597 777
21
Certificates Awarded
For Reporting Entity Fiscal Years Ended in 1995
and Processed by GFOA in Calendar Year 1996
Municipal County
,labama 12 0
Alaska 6 6
American Samoa 0 0
Arizona 23 4
Arkansas 6 0
California 172 16
Colorado 36 15
Connecticut 37 0
Delaware 2 1
Dist. of Columbia 0 0
Florida 123 33
Georgia 40 16
Hawaii 1 3
Idaho 3 4
Illinois 97 8
Indiana 10 2
Iowa 22 3
Kansas 18 4
Kentucky 10 1
Louisiana 6 3
Maine 5 0
Maryland 13 10
Massachusetts 4 0
Michigan 44 14
Minnesota 76 11
--'~ ~isSiSsippi 3 0
lissouri 39 5
Montana 4 3
Nebraska 5 0
Nevada 7 2
New Hampshire 4 0
New Jersey 0 0
New Mexico 3 1
New York 18 9
North Carolina 54 39
North Dakota 5 1
Ohio 87 37
Oklahoma 10 1
Oregon 35 10
Pennsylvania 18 11
Puerto Rico 0 0
Rhode Island 5 0
South Carolina 20 11
South Dakota 4 0
Tennessee 21 5
Texas 140 39
Utah 17 3
Vermont 0 0
Virginia 38 17
Washington 26 7
West Virginia 0 0
isconsin 16 9
w'yoming . 62
TOTAL 1351 366
School
.District Enterprise
0 0 0
7 0 0
0 0 0
54 2 0
0 0 0
0 31 1
16 5 0
1 I 0
0 0 0
0 I 0
2 18 1
4 4 1
0 0 0
2 0 0
13 5 0
0 5 1
4 0 0
3 3 0
0 I 0
18 3 0
0 0 0
2 0 0
0 2 0
I ! 0
0 2 1
0 0 0
3 5 2
2 0 0
0 0 0
1 4 0
0 0 0
I 2 0
1 0 0
4 2 0
23 4 1
0 0 0
42 5 1
2 5 0
24 5 2
11 3 0
0 1 0
0 0 0
7 4 0
0 0 0
0 2 0
37 17 5
6 I 0
0 0 0
7 13 0
3 8 0
0 I 0
I 2 0
0 I 0
302 169 16
Council of
Governments State
Colleges
and
PERS Univ. Other Total
0 0 0 0 12
0 1 0 1 21
0 I 0 0 1
0 5 3 I 92
0 1 0 0 7
0 3 0 13 236
0 5 0 10 87
1 1 0 5 46
I 0 0 1 5
0 0 0 0 l
0 0 0 7 184
0 1 0 5 71
1 1 0 0 6
0 I 0 0 10
1 14 7 30 175
I 0 0 3 22
1 1 1 I 33
0 1 0 I 30
I I 0 3 17
1 1 0 2 34
0 0 0 0 5
1 6 I I 34
I 0 0 0 7
I 3 0 0 64
I 4 0 3 98
I I 0 0 5
0 5 0 1 60
I 0 0 0 10
1 0 I 0 7
I 1 0 5 21
0 1 0 0 5
1 0 0 0 4
0 0 0 0 5
1 7 0 2 43
I 1 1 1 125
1 0 0 0 7
1 6 0 12 191
0 1 0 0 19
I 1 4 11 93
1 2 0 2 48
0 0 0 3 4
0 0 0 0 5
I 1 5 0 49
0 I 0 0 5
1 1 0 0 30
I 7 3 16 265
I 1 0 0 29
0 0 0 0 0
1 4 0 1 81
I 3 0 3 51
I 0 0 3 5
0 0 4 2 34
._[ _[ 0 0 11
3.~_1 0_~_6 3~___0 149 2510
22
Statement of Operations
Reports Submitted and Certificates Awarded
For Fiscal Years Ended in 1995, 1994, 1993 and 1992
By Type of
Government
FY 95 Reports FY 94 Reports FY 93 Reports FY 92 Reports
Processed in 1996 Processed in 1995 Processed in 1994 Processed in 1993
Submissions Awards Submissions Awards Submissions Awards Submissions Awards
Municipal 1395 1351 1347 !299 1288 1241 1226 1171
County 391 366 364 343 346 338 343 325
School District 316 302 299 286 292 271 251 243
Enterprise 173 169 152 150 130 129 116 114
Council of Govts. 17 16 15 15 16 16 18 18
State 42 31 32 28 32 28 27 24
PERS 100 96 93 90 82 77 72 69
Colleges and Univ. 31 30 28 28 21 21 15 14
Other 154 149 143 130 123 119 100 100
TOTAL REPORTS
By Fiscal Year End
2619 2510 2473 2369 2330 2240 2168 2078
January 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
February 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9
March 14 14 14 13 12 12 13 12
April 90 90 91 88 86 83 81 79
May 11 9 12 11 9 8 8 8
June 1317 1262 1223 1168 1144 1098 1025 981
July 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5
August 62 59 58 55 59 52 57 57
September 426 407 409 398 392 378 378 362
October 6 5 5 5 4 4 4 4
November 8 6 7 6 8 8 8 8
December 670 643 639 610 601 582 580 553
TOTAL REPORTS
2619 2510 2473 2369 2330 2240
Submissions & Awards
2168 2078
2619 2473 2330
2240 2168
~ 2078 2031 1854
3000'
2500'
2000'
1500-
1000'
500'
0
1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989
Iim Submissions
Awards
23
City and County Reports Submitted (including ineligible reports) for Fiscal Years Ended in 1995
Compared to Total Cities and Counties
Cities Counties
% %
Units* Submitters Submit Units* Submitters Submit
Alabama 438 14 3.20 67 0 0.00
Alaska 148 7 4.73 12 6 50.00
Arizona 86 23 26.74 15 4 26.67
Arkansas 489 6 1.23 75 0 0.00
California 460 176 38.26 57 19 33.33
Colorado 266 36 13.53 62 15 24.19
Connecticut 178 37 20.79 0 0 0.00
Delaware 57 2 3.51 3 1 33.33
District of Columbia 1 0 0.00 0 0 0.00
Florida 390 127 32.56 66 33 50.00
Georgia 536 40 7.46 157 19 12.10
Hawaii I I 100.00 3 3 100.00
Idaho 199 4 2.01 44 4 9.09
Illinois 2715 97 3.57 102 9 8.82
Indiana 1574 10 0.64 91 2 2.20
Iowa 952 22 2.31 99 3 3.03
Kansas 1980 21 ! .06 105 4 3.81
Kentucky 435 10 2.30 119 1 0.84
Louisiana 301 7 2.33 61 4 6.56
Maine 490 5 1.02 16 0 0.00
Maryland 155 13 8.39 23 I 0 43.48
Massachusetts 351 5 1.42 12 0 0.00
Michigan 1776 46 2.59 83 17 20.48
Minnesota 2657 78 2.94 87 11 12.64
MissisSippi 294 5 1.70 82 0 0.00
Missouri 1257 40 3.18 114 6 5.26
Montana 128 4 3.13 54 3 5.55
Nebraska 986 5 0.51 93 0 0.00
Nevada ! 8 7 38.89 16 2 12.50
New Hampshire 234 4 1.71 10 0 0.00
New Jersey 567 0 0.00 21 0 0.00
New Mexico 98 3 3.06 33 2 6.06
New York 1548 22 1.42 57 12 21.05
North Carolina 516 56 10.85 100 40 40.00
North Dakota 1714 5 0.29 53 I 1.89
Ohio 2256 89 3.95 88 37 42.05
Oklahoma 588 11 1.87 77 2 2.60
Oregon 239 35 14.64 36 11 30.56
Pennsylvania 2570 21 0.82 66 11 16.67
Rhode Island 39 5 12.82 0 0 0.00
South Carolina 269 20 7.43 46 13 28.26
South Dakota 1279 4 0.31 64 0 0.00
Tennessee 339 21 6.19 93 6 6.45
Texas I ! 71 146 12.47 254 40 15.75
Utah 228 17 7.46 29 3 10.34
Vermont 287 0 0.00 14 0 0.00
Virginia 230 38 16.52 95 17 17.89
Washington 268 28 10.45 39 9 23.08
West Virginia 231 0 0.00 55 0 0.00
Wisconsin 1849 16 0.87 72 9 12.50
Wyoming 97 6 6.19 23 2 8.70
TOTAL 35,935 1,395. 3.88% 3,043. 39 ! 12.85%
*Source: 1992 Census of Governments
"Cities" includes cities, municipalities, parishes, villages and townships
24