4.3. SR 01-18-2000-'ity of
iver
MEMORANDUM
item/t4.3.
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
SUBJECT:
Mayor & City Council
Pat Klaers, City A~~istrator
January 18, 2000 ~
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 1998 Fiscal Year. The COA plaque acknowledging
this award will be received in about two months.
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 for ten (10) consecutive years ending December 31, 1998.
This item is on the agenda as information only and no action is necessary from
the City Council except for acknowledgement of receiving the award. The city
receiving this award is due to the efforts of the entire finance department staff
including Joan Frick, Lauren Wipper, Lori Ziemer, and Lori Johnson. Lori
Ziemer and Lori Johnson are responsible for preparation of the city's financial
report. A Star News "photo opportunity" of the entire department will
hopefully take place once the plaque has been received.
Attached is some COA information including a news release, a certificate, and
some pages from the booklet that was provided to the city.
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 No~h Michigan ~enue, Suite 800, Chicago, Illinois 60601
January 06, 2000 312/977-9700. Fax: 312/977-4806
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
rec~"~gnition 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(s), department or agency designated by the
government as primarily responsible for preparing the award-
winning CAFR. This has been presented to:
· Finance Department
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
approximately 13,500 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
The Government Finance Officers ASsociation
of the United States and Canada
presents this
AWARD OF FINANCIAL REPORTING ACHIEVEMENT
Finance Department
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 financial reports are judged to adhere to program standards and represents the
highest award in government financial reporting.
Executive Director
Date
January 6, 2000
CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT FOR EXCELLENCE
IN FINANCIAL REPORTING.
1998 RESULTS
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial
Reporting (Certificate of Achievement) is an award designed to
recognize and encourage excellence in fmancial 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 gnvemment during the fiscal year.
The GFOA believes that gnvemments 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.
To be eligible for a Certificate of Achievement, a report must be
'% published CAFR of a unit of government, a college or
.iversity, a public employee retirement system, or an 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 fmancial 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
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 f'mancial 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.
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 ,4id:
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.
Clarity:
CAFRs satisfying the Certificate Program's
requirements are likely to be flee 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
CAFIL 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 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 1997. The governments currently
holding certificates that have been recognized the most times ia
each state or jurisdiction are italicized and listed fa'st.
Michigan County Road C~mmission
Sel~-Insurance Pool/
Michiga~l Municipal Employees'
Retirement System/
t igan~Public Schoo~ Employees
Retirement Syste~
Michig .an ~tate Emplqyees'
Retirefl~ent System
Midland \
Midland CoUnty
Monroe County /
Mount Pleasa~t
Muskegon
Muskegon Cou~ty/
Novi
oak Park \
Oakland County
Ottawa County
Port Huron
Port Huron Areq fool District
Portage
Rochester Hills/
Saginaw
Saginaw Char~er '
Saginaw
Saint Clair S~hore:
Southfield/
State of Mikhigan
Sterling ,H//fights
: nse~
Three Ri~,ers
Troy
Washmiaw County
Wayne
Wayne Charter County
Zeeland
MINNESOTA
Bloomington (27 awards)
Albert Lea
Anoka
Anoka County
Austin
Blaine
Blue Earth County
Brainerd
Breckenridge
Brooklyn Center
Brooklyn Park
Bumsville
Carver County
C' 'hassen
C, .xa
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
Hastings, Dakota County
Hennepin County
Hopkins
Hugo
Hutchinson
lnver Grove Heights
Lakeville
Lino Lakes
Luveme
Mahtomedi
Mankato
Maple Grove
Maplewood
Minneapolis
Minneapolis Employees' Retirement
Fund
Minneapolis L~rary Board
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan
Airports Commission
Minnesota Public Employees'
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
11
Richfield
Robbinsdale
Rochester
Rosemount
Roseville
Saint Cloud
Saint Louis County
Saint Louis Park
Saint Paul
Saint Paul Housing and Redevelopment
Authority
Savage
Shakopee
Sherbume County
Shoreview
Shorewood
State of Minnesota
Stillwater
Suburban Hennepin Regional Park Dis~
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
MISSISSIPPI
dacksqn (16 awards)
Gulfport
McComb
Meridian
MississippkPublic
Ridgeland
State of
(21
Arnold
Belton
Bi-State'.
District
Blue Springs
Boone County
Bridgeton
A
~ of the
Reports Submitted and Certificates Awarded for Fiscal Years Ended in t995, 1996, and 1997
Special Review Committee and Members During Years Ended December 31, 1998 and 1997
FY 95 Reports FY 96 Reports FY 97 Reports t998 t997
Processed in t996 Processed in 1997 Processed in 1998 Active SRC Active SRC
~Jb.l:l:]JJt,~J~ A~rds ~ Awards ~ A~rds Members Members
Alabama 15 12 14 14 15 14 2 1
Alaska 24 21 22 21 21 21 3 4
American Samoa I 1 1 I I 1 0 0
Arizona 93 92 102 100 112 112 14 16
Arkansas 8 7 8 8 9 8 1 2
Califomia 247 236 259 251 270 264 47 48
Colorado 89 87 91 87 96 92 22 19
Connecticut 46 46 46 45 51 49 8 9
Delaware 6 5 6 6 7 6 3 2
District of Columbia 2 1 2 I 3 3 4 3
Florida 188 184 205 201 204 202 57 66
Georgia 75 71 76 71 79 73 14 12
Hawaii 6 6 6 6 6 6 2 2
Idaho 11 10 13 10 14 13 2 3
Illinois 177 175 164 179 190 187 35 38
Indiana 22 22 24 24 26 25 4 8
Iowa 33 33 34 34 39 38 5 8
Kansas 33 30 34 34 36 35 7 9
Kentucky 17 17 19 19 19 18 4 4
Louisiana 36 34 37 36 39 39 8 11
Maine 5 5 7 7 8 8 4 4
Maryland 34 34 34 34 36 35 14 15
Massachusetts 8 7 8 8 8 8 6 7
Michigan 69 64 71 67 74 73 11 11
Minnesota 101 98 102 102 103 102 31 30
~i-~sT~i .................... ? ....................... ~ ................... 7 ................7 ........................ 7 ...................... 7 ..................... ~ ....................... o
Missouri 64 60 67 65 66 65 13 19
Montana 11 10 12 10 11 10 3 5
Nebraska 7 7 7 7 6 6 7 7
Nevada 21 21 23 22 25 22 10 9
New Hampshire 5 5 6 5 6 6 3 2
New Jersey 4 4 5 5 10 10 3 2
New Mexico 6 5 6 5 6 6 2 1
New York 51 43 55 55 56 52 22 23
North Carolina 132 125 146 141 150 148 19 18
North Dakota 7 7 7 7 7 7 5 6
Ohio 195 191 204 204 228 225 54 62
Oklahoma 23 19 21 20 24 23 6 5
Oregon 95 93 97 96 96 96 13 16
Pennsylvania 51 48 55 51 54 51 14 17
Puerto Rico 5 4 7 7 7 7 I 1
Rhode Island 6 5 7 6 7 7 2 3
South Carolina 54 49 59 57 62 61 11 8
South Dakota 5 5 5 5 5 5 0 0
Tennessee 31 30 34 33 36 36 5 8
Texas 275 265 284 277 295 287 44 44
Utah 29 29 30 29 34 33 3 4
Vermont 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Virginia 81 81 82 81 89 84 18 19
Washington 56 51 57 56 55 55 14 12
West Virginia 5 5 5 5 6 6 3 3
Wisconsin 35 34 40 38 40 40 12 11
Wyoming 12 11 11 11 11 11 3 5
TOTAL 2619 2510 2744 2671 2865 2798 598 642
Certificates Awarded For Reporting Entity Fiscal Years Ended in 1997
and Processed by GFOA in Calendar Year 1998
School ~ ~
Mul:tJ.C, Jg~ .~ District ~ ~ State PERS Universities Other Total
Alabama 13 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 14
Alaska 9 5 5 1 0 0 1 0 0 21
American Samoa 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1
Arizona 27 5 66 3 0 0 6 3 2 112
Arkansas 6 0 0 0 0 1 I 0 0 8
California 184 19 0 33 0 I 9 0 18 264
Colorado 37 15 15 7 0 1 6 0 11 92
Connecticut 41 0 1 1 0 I 0 0 5 49
Delaware 2 I 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 6
District of Columbia 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 3
Florida 136 32 3 18 1 0 5 0 7 202
Georgia 40 16 5 5 1 0 1 0 5 73
Hawaii 1 3 0 0 0 I 1 0 0 6
Idaho 5 4 2 0 0 1 I 0 0 13
Illinois 102 10 15 12 0 1 14 6 27 187
Indiana 12 2 1 5 I I 0 0 3 25
Iowa 23 4 6 1 0 1 I 1 1 38
Kansas 23 4 4 2 0 0 1 0 1 35
Kentucky 11 2 0 2 0 1 1 0 1 18
Louisiana 8 3 19 3 1 0 3 0 2 39
Maine 6 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 8
Maryland 13 10 3 0 0 1 6 1 1 35
Massachusetts 5 0 0 2 0 I 0 0 0 8
Michigan 47 18 1 2 0 1 3 0 1 73
Minnesota 81 11 0 2 1 1 3 0 3 102
Missouri 39 7
Montana 5 3
Nebraska 5 0
Nevada 7 2
New Hampshire 4 0
New Jersey 1 0
New Mexico 3 2
New York 23 10
North Carolina 66 44
North Dakota 4 1
Ohio 91 40
Oklahoma 12 2
Oregon 36 10
Pennsylvania 21 12
Puerto Rico 0 0
Rhode Island 6 0
South Carolina 23 13
South Dakota 4 0
Tennessee 20 7
Texas 148 45
Utah 21 3
Vermont 0 0
Virginia 36 19
Washington 27 8
Vest Virginia 0 0
Wisconsin 18 9
Wyoming 6 1
Total 1463 403
3 7 I 0 5 0 3 65
1 0 0 1 0 0 0 10
0 0 0 I 0 0 0 6
I 3 0 1 I 0 7 22
0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6
6 2 0 1 0 0 0 10
I 0 0 0 0 0 0 6
5 4 0 I 7 0 2 52
28 5 I I 1 1 1 148
0 0 0 I 1 0 0 7
66 10 1 I 6 0 10 225
I 4 0 1 3 0 0 23
24 8 2 1 1 4 10 96
12 2 0 I 2 0 I 51
0 2 0 1 0 I 3 7
0 I 0 0 0 0 0 7
11 5 0 1 I 7 0 61
0 0 0 0 I 0 0 5
0 7 0 1 I 0 0 36
43 18 4 1 7 7 14 287
6 I 0 I 1 0 0 33
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 17 0 1 5 0 0 84
4 9 0 1 2 0 4 55
0 3 0 1 0 0 2 6
1 2 0 1 0 7 2 40
0 1 0 I 1 0 I 11
365 214 14 39 113 38 149 2798
23
Total Governmental Units and Submitte~
rotal cities and counties per 1992 census of governments
Total submissions by cities, counties and states of fiscal years ended in 1997
Percentage of total cities, counties and states submitting
Population ' Units
1 - 9,999 32,487
10,000 - 24,999 2,018
25,000 - 49,999 815
50,000 - 99,999 387
100,000 - 199,999 146
200,000 or more 82
Total 35,935
Cities*
Submitted
257
437
364
246
119
71
1,494
% 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
* "Cities" includes cities, municipalities, parishes, villages, and townships
Percent
0.79%
21.66%
44.66%
63.57%
81.51%
86.59%
4.16%
86.59%
83.33%
7O.89%
55.94%
35.88%
4.16%
Counties
Population Units Submitted Percent
1 - 9,999 728 2 0.27%
10,000 - 24,999 908 22 2.42%
25,000 - 49,999 612 41 6.70%
50,000 - 99,999 377 93 24.67%
100,000 - 249,999 244 116 47.54%
250,000 or more 174 139 79.89%
3043 413 13.57%
% of all counties over 250,000
% of all counties over 100,000
% of all counties over 50,000
% of all counties over 25,000
% of all counties over 10,000
% of all counties
States**
Units Submitted
52 41
.... States" includes the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
79.89%
61.00%
43.77%
27.65%
17.75%
13.57%
Percent
78.85%
24
City and County Reports Submitted (Including ineligible reports)
for Fiscal Years Ended 1997 Compared to Total Cities and Counties
Cities Counties
Units* Submi~e~ ~ Units* Submi~e~
Jama 438 13 2.97% 67 0
Alaska 148 9 6.08% 12 5
Arizona 86 27 31.40% 15 5
Arkansas 489 7 1.43% 75 0
California 460 189 41.09% 57 19
Colorado 266 38 14.29% 62 16
Connecticut 178 42 23.60% 0 0
Delaware 57 3 5.26% 3 1
District of Columbia 1 0 0.00% 0 0
Florida 390 137 35.13% 66 33
Georgia 536 45 8.40% 157 17
Hawaii 1 1 100.00% 3 3
Idaho 199 6 3.02% 44 4
Illinois 2715 102 3.76% 102 10
Indiana 1574 13 0.83% 91 2
Iowa 952 24 2.52% 99 4
Kansas 1980 23 1.16% 105 4
Kentucky 435 11 2.53% 119 2
Louisiana 301 8 2.66% 61 3
Maine 490 6 1.22% 16 1
Maryland 155 14 9.03% 23 10
Massachusetts 351 5 1.42% 12 0
Michigan 1776 48 2.70% 83 18
Minnesota 2657 82 3.09% 87 11
% Submitted
0.00%
41.67%
33.33%
0.00%
33.33%
25.81%
0.00%
33.33%
0.00%
50.00%
10.83%
100.00%
9.09%
9.80%
2.20%
4.04%
3.81%
1.68%
4.92%
6.25%
43.48%
0.00%
21.69%
12.64%
~issippi 294 5 1.70% 82 0
. ,$ouri 1257 39 3.10% 114 7
Montana 128 5 3.91% 54 3
Nebraska 986 5 0.51% 93 0
Nevada 18 9 50.00% 16 3
New Hampshire 234 4 1.71% 10 0
New Jersey 567 1 0.18% 21 0
New Mexico 98 3 3.06% 33 2
New York 1548 26 1.68% 57 11
North Camlina 516 66 12.79% 100 45
North Dakota 1714 4 0.23% 53 1
Ohio 2256 91 4.03% 88 40
Oklahoma 588 12 2.04% 77 2
Oregon 239 36 15.06% 36 10
Pennsylvania 2570 23 0.89% 66 12
Rhode Island 39 6 15.38% 0 0
South Carolina 269 23 8.55% 46 14
South Dakota 1279 4 0.31% 64 0
Tennessee 339 20 5.90% 93 7
Texas 1171 151 12.89% 254 47
Utah 228 21 9.21% 29 3
Vermont 287 0 0.00% 14 0
Virginia 230 36 15.65% 95 20
Washington 268 27 10.07% 39 8
W~est Virginia 231 0 0.00% 55 0
onsin 1649 18 0.97% 72 9
Wyoming 97 6 6.19% 23 1
Total 35935 t 494 4.16% 3043 4t3
0.00%
6.14%
5.56%
//0.00%
18.75%
0.00%
0.00%
6.06%
19.30%
45.00%
1.89%
45.45%
2.60%
27.78%
18.18%
0.00%
30.43%
0.00%
7.53%
18.50%
10.34%
0.00%
21.05%
20.51%
0.00%
12.50%
4.35%
13.57%
* Source: 1992 Census of Govemments
Cities includes cities, municipalities, parishes, villages, and townships