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5.2. SR 12-22-2003Item ~ 5.2. f,'IEf,'IORANDUI I TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: DATE: Pat Klaers, City Admini,s~,ator December 22, 2003 SUBJECT: Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Finance Award I am very pleased to once again notify the City Council that the City of Elk River has received the Certificate of Achievement (COA) for excellence in financial reporting for the 2002 fiscal year. A COA plaque acknowledging this award will be received in the near future. The COA is a prestigious national award recognizing performance with the highest standards for preparation of state and local government financial reports. In order to achieve 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 principals and applicable legal requirements. The COA is valid for a one-year period. The City of Elk River has received the COA for 14 consecutive years ending December 31, 2002. The city receiving this award is due to the efforts of the entire finance department including Joan Frick, Senior Accounting Clerk; Lauren Wipper, Payroll Clerk; Denise Cully, Accounting Clerk (PT); Lori Ziemer, Assistant Finance Director; and Lori Johnson, Finance Director. Responsibility for preparation of the CAFR lies with Lori Ziemer and Lori Johnson. This item is on the agenda for information only and no action is necessary from the City Council. Attached is COA information including a news release and some pages from the booklet that was provided by the GFOA. S:~Council~Pat~2003\GFOAaward.doc Government Finance Officers Association 203 North LaSalle Street, Suite 2700 Chicago, Illinois 6060 l - t 2 ! 0 312.977.9700 fax: 312.977.4806 December 05, 2003 The Honorable Stephanie Klinzing Mayor City of Elk River 13065 Orono Parkway Elk River, Minnesota 55330 Dear Mayor Klinzing: We are pleased to notify you that your comprehensive annual finan- cial report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2002 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. The Certificate of Achievement plaque will be shipped to: Ms. Lori Johnson Finance Director under separate 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, enclosed are a sample news release and the Certificate Program "Results" for reports with fiscal years ended during 2001 repre- senting the most recent statistics available. 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 FINANC~ O~FF/~CERS ASSOCIATION Stepheh J. Gauthier Director/Technical Services Center SJG/ds Government Finance Officers Association 203 North LaSalle Street, Suite 2700 Chicago, Illinois 60601-1210 312.977.9700 fax: 312.977.4806 December 5, 2003 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 financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplish- ment by a government and its management. An Award of Financial Reporting Achievement has been awarded to the individual(s), department or agency designated by the government as primarily responsible for preparing the award- winning CAFR. This has been presented to: Finance Department, City of Elk River 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 CAFE. The GF©A is a nonprofit professional association serving approximately 14,000 government finance professionals with offices in Chicago, Illinois, and Washington, D.C. www. gfoa. org CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT FOR EXCELLENCE IN FINANCIAL REPORTING 2002 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. 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 of a government. Securities Marketing Aid: Clarity: Comparability: recognized award, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government unit and its management. Reports 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. CAFRs satisfying the Certificate Program's requirements are likely to be free of ambiguities and potentially misleading presentations. 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. To be eligible for a Certificate of Achievement, a report must be the published CAFR of a unit of govemment, a public college or university, a public employee retirement system, or a governmental investment pool. Eligible CAFRs must include general purpose financial statements presented in conformity with GAAP. These reports are also required to have been audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards. 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 temfinology and formatting conventions. The Certificate Program provides participants with extensive technical reference material on governmental accounting and financial reporting theory. This material 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 has been substantial. Based on recent trends, steady growth is anticipated to continue. More and more governments are recognizing 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 include: 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's review process also are provided with a confidential list of detailed comments and suggestions for improving their financial reporting techniques. Completeness: The financial statements, supporting schedules, statistical tables and narrative explanations required for a Cbrtificate 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) or from the "Forms" section of GFOA's website at www.gfoa.org. 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 2001. The governments currently holding certificates that have been recognized the most times in each state or jurisdiction are in bold italics. Special note is given to those governments that prepared a CAFR in accordance with the new financial reporting model established by Governmental Accounting Standards Board Statement No. 34, Basic Financial Statements-and Management's Discussion and Analysis-for State and Local Governments and won the Certificate of Achievement for that CAFR. A listing of these governments precedes the complete list of winners to recognize their accomplishment. Also, a # sign preceding the government's name indicates they received the GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for their fiscal period beginning in 2001. Recognition: The Certificate of Achievement is a nationally MINNESOTA Albert Lea Anoka #Anoka County Austin Blaine #Bloomington (31 awards) #Blue Earth County Brainerd Breckenridge Brooklyn Center #Brooklyn Park #Bumsville Carver County Chanhassen Chaska Columbia Heights #Coon Rapids Cottage Grove Crystal #Dakota County Deephaven Detroit Lakes Dilworth #Duluth Duluth Teachers' Retirement Fund Association Eagan East Grand Forks #Eden Prairie Elk River Fairmont Falcon Heights Faribault Fergus Falls Fridley Golden Valley Goodview Grand Rapids Grand Rapids Public Utilities Commission Hastings #Hennepin County Hopkins Hugo Hutchinson Independent School District No. 624 Inver Grove Heights Lakeville Lino Lakes Luverne Mahtomedi Mankato Maple Grove #Maplewood Minneapolis Minneapolis Community Devlopment Agency Minneapolis Employees' Retirement Fund Minneapolis Library Board #Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission Minnesota Public Employees' Retirement Association Minnesota State Lottery Minnesota State Retirement System Minnesota Teachers' Retirement Association Minnetonka Moorhead Mora Morris Mound New Brighton New Hope New Ulm North Mankato North Saint Paul Oakdale Olmsted County Orono Plymouth Ramsey #Ramsey County Rice County #Richfield #Robbinsdale Rochester Rosemount #Roseville #Saint Cloud #Saint Louis County Saint Louis Park Saint Paul Saint Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority Savage Shakopee Sherburne County Shoreview Shorewood South Saint Paul State of Minnesota Stillwater Suburban Hennepin Regional Park District Twin Cities Area Metropolitan Council Wadena Waseca #Washington County Wayzata West Saint Paul Western Lake Superior Sanitary District #White Bear Lake #White Bear Township Winona Woodbury #Worthington ~5 Reports Submitted and Certificates Awarded for Fiscal Years Ended in 1999, 2000 and 2001 Active Special Review Committee Members During Years Ended December 31, 2002 and 2001 FY 99 Reports Processed in 2000 Submissions Awards FY 00 Reports FY 01 Reports Processed in 2001 Processed in 2002 Submissions Awards Submissions Awards 2002 2001 Active SRC Active SRC Members Members Alabama 15 15 14 14 16 16 Alaska 26 26 26 26 25 25 American Samoa 1 1 1 1 1 1 Arizona 109 108 116 115 116 115 Arkansas 9 9 8 8 9 8 California 303 296 313 309 330 322 Colorado 107 107 103 103 104 104 Connecticut 55 53 58 58 60 59 Delaware 8 8 8 8 8 8 District of Columbia 3 3 3 3 3 3 Florida 211 210 219 216 226 225 Georgia 87 83 93 91 95 94 Hawaii 6 6 6 6 5 5 idaho 13 13 13 13 14 14 Illinois 204 202 203 202 210 208 Indiana 27 27 27 27 28 28 Iowa 40 40 41 41 42 42 Kansas 40 38 39 39 39 39 Kentucky 20 20 19 19 21 21 Louisiana 45 43 44 44 49 47 Maine 10 10 11 9 13 11 Maryland 40 38 40 40 41 40 Massachusetts 10 10 11 10 11 11 Michigan 84 80 90 87 95 93 Minnesota 105 105 108 108 110 109 1 1 4 5 0 0 11 12 1 1 54 50 25 22 9 10 2 2 5 10 60 56 13 17 0 0 3 2 32 35 3 2 8 6 7 8 4 3 6 7 5 7 7 6 9 9 17 12 30 27 Mississippi 7 7 7 7 8 7 Missouri 70 67 68 68 69 68 Montana 12 12 12 11 13 13 Nebraska 7 7 7 7 8 8 Nevada 24 23 26 26 27 27 New Hampshire 8 8 7 7 9 8 New Jersey 11 10 9 9 9 9 New Mexico 6 6 5 5 5 5 New York 66 64 64 61 65 65 North Carolina 154 153 156 155 160 158 North Dakota 9 9 8 8 8 8 Ohio 262 262 284 283 292 290 Oklahoma 25 25 27 26 26 26 Oregon 98 98 98 96 97 97 Pennsylvania 57 57 55 55 59 59 Puerto Rico 9 8 7 7 4 4 Rhode Island 7 6 7 7 8 8 South Carolina 68 68 69 67 72 70 South Dakota, 5 5 5 5 5 5 Tennessee 39 38 38 38 40 40 Texas 309 302 314 309 317 314 Utah 34 34 34 33 33 33 Vermont 0 0 1 0 1 1 Virginia 95 95 95 94 97 95 Washington 55 51 55 54 58 56 West Virginia 8 8 8 8 8 8 Wisconsin 43 42 43 42 42 42 Wyoming 12 11 12 12 12 12 TOTAL 3078 3027 3135 3097 3223 3184 Submissions and Awards include ineligible and stub period reports, as appropriate. 0 0 15 13 1 2 2 4 4 6 2 1 5 4 2 2 22 23 33 34 9 9 72 76 8 8 14 13 11 9 1 1 2 1 18 16 0 0 8 7 45 46 3 4 1 0 13 14 4 15 14 4 11 10 2 2 638 634 27 Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Certificates Awarded For Reporting Entity Fiscal Years Ended in 2001 Municipal 12 10 0 32 7 213 38 51 3 0 146 50 0 6 106 15 23 25 13 8 9 12 6 59 82 County 0 7 o 6 o 21 16 0 1 0 34 24 3 4 11 2 5 5 2 5 1 12 o 21 11 and Processed by GFOA in Calendar Year 2002 School Council of Collefles & District Enterprise Government State PERS Universities Other Total 0 2 0 1 1 0 0 16 5 1 0 0 2 0 0 25 0 0 0 0 I 0 0 1 60 4 1 0 6 4 2 115 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 8 0 38 1 1 23 0, 25 322 20 10 0 1 5 0 14 104 1 2 0 1 0 0 4 59 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 8 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 3 10 22 1 0 5 0 7 225 5 7 1 0 1 0 6 94 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 5 2 0 0 I 1 0 0 14 15 12 0 1 15 8 40 208 1 4 1 1 1 0 3 28 8 2 0 1 1 1 1 42 4 2 0 0 2 0 1 39 0 2 0 1 2 0 I 21 22 6 0 I 3 0 2 47 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 11 4 1 0 1 6 2 2 40 0 3 0 1 I 0 0 11 3 2 0 1 5 0 2 93 1 3 1 1 5 0 5 109 Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Total 5 4O 5 5 8 5 1 2 29 67 4 115 12 35 23 0 7 26 4 25 154 19 1 36 3O 0 2O 7 1611 0 7 4 0 3 0 0 1 12 5O 1 44 2 13 16 0 0 14 0 7 44 3 0 24 8 0 10 1 455 0 0 0 1 I 0 0 7 3 10 1 0 4 0 3 68 1 0 0 1 I 0 1 13 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 8 2 4 0 1 1 0 8 27 0 1 0 I 1 0 0 8 4 2 0 1 I 0 0 9 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 8 6 0 1 7 0 2 65 31 4 0 1 1 1 3 158 0 0 0 I 2 0 0 8 100 15 0 1 6 0 9 290 1 5 0 1 5 0 0 26 21 7 3 1 1 5 11 97 13 2 0 1 2 0 2 59 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 8 14 6 0 1 1 8 0 70 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 0 6 0 1 1 0 0 40 53 22 5 1 9 7 19 314 6 3 0 1 1 0 0 33 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 9 18 0 1 6 0 1 95 5 8 0 1 2 0 2 56 0 6 0 1 0 0 1 8 1 3 0 1 0 7 0 42 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 12 434 259 15 41 144 44 181 3184 28 Total Governmental Units and Submitters Total cities and counties per 2002 census of governments Total submissions by cities, counties and states for fiscal years ended in 2001 Percentage of total cities, counties and states submitting Cities* Population Units Submitted Percent 1 - 9,999 32,070 263 0.82% 10,000 - 24,999 2,209 472 21.37% 25,000 - 49,999 916 408 44.54% 50,000 - 99,999 461 278 60.30% 100,000 - 199,999 183 129 70.49% 200,000 or more 94 79 84.04% Total 35,933 1,629 4.53% % of all cities over 200,000 % of all cities over 100,000 % of all cities over 50,000 % of all cities over 25,000 % of all cities over 10,000 % of all cities 84.04% 75.09% 65.85% 54.O5% 35.36% 4.53% * "Cities" includes cities, municipalities, villages, and townships Counties Population Units Submitted 1 - 9,999 671 2 10,000 - 24,999 869 20 25,000 - 49,999 638 51 50,000 - 99,999 383 97 100,000 - 249,999 272 132 250,000 or more 201 158 Total 3034 460 Percent 0.30% 2.30% 7.99% 25.33% 48.53% 78.61% 15.16% % of all counties over 250,000 % of all counties over 100,000 % of afl counties over 50,000 % of afl counties over 25,000 % of all counties over 10,000 % of all counties 78.61% 61.31% 45.21% 29.32% 19.38% 15.16% States** Units Submitted Percent 52 42 80.77% .... States" includes the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico 31 City and County Reports Submitted (including ineligible and stub period reports) for Fiscal Years Ended in 2001 Compared to Total Cities and Counties Cities Counties Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Total Units* Submitters % Submitted Units* Submitters 451 12 2.66% 67 0 149 10 6.71% 12 7 87 32 36.78% 15 6 499 7 1.40% 75 0 475 216 45.47% 57 24 270 38 14.07% 62 16 179 51 28.49% 0 0 57 3 5.26% 3 1 1 0 0.00% 0 0 404 146 36.14% 66 34 531 51 9.60% 156 23 1 0 0.00% 3 3 200 6 3.00% 44 4 2722 106 3.89% 102 11 1575 15 0.95% 91 2 948 23 2.43% 99 5 1926 25 1.30% 104 5 424 13 3.07% 119 2 302 8 2.65% 60 5 489 9 1.84% 16 1 157 12 7.64% 23 13 351 6 1.71% 5 0 1775 61 3.44% 83 21 2647 83 3.14% 87 11 296 6 2.03% 82 0 1258 41 3.26% 114 7 129 5 3.88% 54 4 977 5 0.51% 93 0 19 8 42.11% 16 3 234 6 2.56% 10 0 566 1 0.18% 21 0 101 2 1.98% 33 1 1545 29 1.88% 57 12 541 67 12.38% 100 52 1692 4 0.24% 53 1 2250 117 5.20% 88 44 590 12 2.03% 77 2 240 35 14.58% 36 13 2564 23 0.90% 66 16 39 7 17.95% 0 0 269 26 9.67% 46 14 1248 4 0.32% 66 0 349 25 7.16% 92 7 1196 156 13.04% 254 44 236 19 8.05% 29 3 284 1 0.35% 14 0 229 38 16.59% 95 24 279 31 11.11% 39 8 234 0 0.00% 55 0 1850 20 1.08% 72 10 98 7 7.14% 23 1 35933 t628 4.53% 3034 460 * Source: 2002 Census of Governments Cities includes cities, municipalities, villages, and townships % Submitted 0.00% 58.33% 40.00% 0.00% 42.11% 25.81% 0.00% 33.33% 0.00% 51.52% 14.74% 100.00% 9.09% 10.78% 2.20% 5.05% 4.81% 1.68% 8.33% 6.25% 56.52% 0.00% 25.30% 12.64% 0.00% 6.14% 7.41% 0.00% 18.75% 0.00% 0.00% 3.03% 21,05% 52.00% 1.89% 50.00% 2.60% 36.11% 24.24% 0.00% 30.43% 0.00% 7.61% 17.32% 10.34% 0.00% 25.26% 20.51% 0.00% 13.89% 4.35% 15.16% 32