5.3. SR 01-08-2001City of
E
River
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
SUBJECT:
MEMORANDUM
Mayor & City Council
Pat Klaers, City Administrator
January $, 2001
GFOA Finance Award
Item #5.3
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 1999 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 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 eleven consecutive years ending December 31,
1999.
This item is on the agenda as information only and no action is necessary
from the City Council except to acknowledge receipt of the award. The city
receiving this award is due to the efforts of the entire finance department
staff including Joan Frick, Sr. Accounting Clerk, Lauren Wipper, Payroll
Clerk, Lori Ziemer, Assistant Finance Director, and Lori Johnson, Finance
Director. Responsibility for preparation of the CAFR lies with Lori Ziemer
and Lori Johnson. 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 (763) 441-7420 · Fax (763) 441-7425
GOVERNMENT FINANCE
OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
180 No~h Michigan Avenue, Suite 800, Chicago, Itlinois 60601
312/977-9700 o Fax: 312/977-4606
December 28, 2000
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 CAFR.
The GFOA is a nonprofit professional association serving
approximately 14,000 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
1999 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.
To be eligible for a Certificate of Achievement, a report must be
the published CAFR of a unit of government, a public college or
university, a public employee retirement system, or a governmental
investment pool. Eligible CAFRs must include general purpose
f'mancial 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 terminology and
formatting conventions. The Certificate Program provides
participants with extensive technical reference material on
governmental accounting and fmancial 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.
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 ~1 id:
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 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
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 fi~om 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 1998. The governments currently
holding certificates that have been recognized the most times in
each state or jurisdiction are in bold italics. A # sign preceeding the
govenunent's name indicates they also received the GFOA's
Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for their fiscal period
beginning in 1998.
MINNESOTA
Albert Lea
Anoka
#Anoka County
Austin
Blaine
#Blue Earth County
#Bloomington (28 awards)
Brainerd
Breckenridge
Brooklyn Center
#Brooklyn Park
Bumsville
Carver County
Chanhassen
Chaska
Columbia Heights
~'~ oon Rapids
.~age 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, Dakota County
#Hennepin County
Hopkins
Hutchinson
Inver Grove Heights
Lakeville
Lino Lakes
Luveme
Mahtomedi
Mankato
Maple Grove
#Maplewood
Minneapolis
Minneapolis Community Dcvlopment
Agency
Minneapolis Employees' Retirement
Fund
Minneapolis Library Board
#Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan
Airports Commission
Minnesota Public Employees'
Retirement Association
Minnesota Teachers' Retirement
Association
Minnetonka
Moorhead
Mora
Morris
Mound
New Brighton
New Hope
New Ulm
North Mankato
North Saint Paul
Oakdale
Olmsted County
#0rono
Plymouth
Ramsey
#Rarnsey County
lUee County
#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
South Saint Paul
State of Minnesota
Stillwater
Suburban Hennepin Regional Park
Dislrict
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
Reports Submitted and Certificates Awarded for Fiscal Years Ended in 1996, 1997, and 1998
Active Special Review Committee Members During Years Ended December 31, 1999 and 1998
FY 96 Reports
Processed in 1997
~ Awards Submissions
Alabama 14 14
Alaska 22 21
American Samoa 1 1
Arizona 102 100
Arkansas 8 8
California 259 251
Colorado 91 87
Connecticut 46 45
Delaware 6 6
District of Columbia 2 1
Florida 205 201
Georgia 76 71
Hawaii 6 6
Idaho 13 10
Illinois 184 179
Indiana 24 24
Iowa 34 34
Kansas 34 34
Kentucky 19 19
Louisiana 37 36
Maine 7 7
Maryland 34 34
Massachusetts 8 8
Michigan 71 67
Minnesota 102 102
Mississippi 7 7
Missouri 67 65
Montana 12 10
Nebraska 7 7
Nevada 23 22
New Hampshire 6 5
New Jersey 5 5
New Mexico 6 5
New York 55 55
North Carolina 146 141
North Dakota 7 7
Ohio 204 204
Oklahoma 21 20
Oregon 97 96
Pennsylvania 55 51
Puerto Rico 7 7
Rhode Island 7 6
South Carolina 59 57
South Dakota 5 5
Tennessee 34 33
Texas 284 277
Utah 30 29
Vermont 0 0
Virginia 82 81
Washington 57 56
West Virginia 5 5
Wisconsin 40 38
Wyoming 11 11
TOTAL 2744 2671
FY 97 Reports FY 98 Reports 1999 1998
Processed in 1998 Processed in 1999 Active SRC Active SRC
Awards Submissions Awards Members Members
15 14 16 14 2 2
21 21 22 21 4 3
1 1 1 I 0 0
112 112 118 116 11 14
9 8 8 8 2 1
270 264 293 282 54 47
96 92 100 99 21 22
51 49 54 53 11 8
7 6 6 6 3
3 3 3 3 6 4
204 202 212 209 58 57
79 73 82 79 16 14
6 6 6 6 1 2
14 13 14 14 2 2
190 187 197 195 36 35
26 25 26 26 2 4
39 38 36 36 6 5
36 35 37 37 7 7
19 18 20 18 4 4
39 39 44 42 6 8
8 8 10 9 5 4
36 35 37 36 13 14
8 8 9 9 9 6
74 73 79 78 11 11
103 102 105 105 33 31
7 7 7 7 0 0
66 65 70 67 12 13
11 10 12 11 4 3
6 6 7 7 3 7
25 22 23 23 7 10
6 6 8 8 3 3
10 10 12 12 4 3
6 6 6 6 3 2
56 52 62 59 20 22
150 148 150 146 26 19
7 7 9 9 10 5
228 225 243 243 67 54
24 23 26 25 6 6
96 96 101 98 11 13
64 51 56 53 13 14
7 7 8 7 1 1
7 7 8 5 1 2
62 61 67 65 10 11
5 5 5 5 0 0
36 36 36 36 7 5
295 287 305 300 42 44
34 33 34 34 4 3
0 0 0 0 0 0
89 84 92 90 16 18
55 55 58 57 11 14
6 6 7 7 3 3
40 40 41 40 11 12
11 11 10 10 3 3
2865 2798 2998 2932 621 598
Submissions and Awards include ineligible and stub reports where applicable
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
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
Certificates Awarded For Reporting Entity Fiscal Years Ended in 1998
and Processed by GFOA in Calendar Year 1999
School Council of Colleges &
Municipal County_ District ~ Government State PERS Universities Other Total
12 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 14
10 5 5 I 0 0 0 0 0 21
0 0 0 0 0 0 I 0 0 1
30 5 65 3 1 0 6 3 3 116
7 0 0 0 0 I 0 0 0 8
192 19 0 36 1 1 11 0 22 282
37 18 17 8 0 I 5 0 13 99
44 0 1 2 0 I 0 0 5 53
2 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 6
0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 3
140 33 3 21 1 0 5 0 6 209
42 18 5 6 1 0 1 0 6 79
I 3 0 0 0 1 I 0 0 6
6 4 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 14
103 11 16 12 0 1 14 5 33 195
13 2 1 5 1 I 0 0 3 26
21 4 6 1 0 1 1 I 1 36
25 4 4 2 0 0 1 0 I 37
11 2 0 2 0 1 1 0 1 18
7 4 21 3 0 0 3 0 4 42
7 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 9
12 10 4 0 0 1 6 2 1 36
6 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 9
49 19 2 2 0 1 5 0 0 78
81 11 0 3 · 1 1 4 0 4 105
5 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 7
41 7 3 8 1 0 4 0 3 67
5 3 I 0 0 1 1 0 0 11
5 0 0 0 0 1 0 I 0 7
8 3 1 3 0 0 1 0 7 23
5 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 8
1 0 8 2 0 1 0 0 0 12
3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6
28 10 7 4 0 1 7 0 2 59
65 45 27 4 0 1 I 2 1 146
5 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 9
97 41 76 11 1 1 6 0 10 243
13 2 1 4 0 1 4 0 0 25
37 11 24 8 3 1 1 4 9 98
22 12 11 3 0 1 3 0 I 53
0 0 0 2 0 1 0 1 3 7
4 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 5
25 14 11 5 0 I 1 8 0 65
4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5
23 7 0 4 0 1 1 0 0 36
150 45 49 19 5 1 9 6 16 300
20 3 6 3 0 1 1 0 0 34
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
35 23 7 18 0 I 6 0 0 90
29 9 4 10 0 1 2 0 2 57
0 0 0 5 0 I 0 0 1 7
18 9 I 2 0 1 0 7 2 40
5 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 10
1511 422 390 231 16 39 121 40 162 2932
Total Governmental Units and Submittem
Total cities and counties per 1997 census of governments
Total submissions by cities, counties and states of fiscal years ended in 1998
Percentage of total cities, counties and states submitting
Cities*
Population Units Submitted
1 - 9,999 32,326 259
10,000 - 24,999 2,125 461
25,000 - 49,999 860 375
50,000 - 99,999 435 257
100,000 - 199,999 168 112
200,000 or more 86 77
Total 36,000 1,541
% 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
0.80%
21.69%
43.60%
59.08%
66.67%
89.53%
4.28%
89.53%
74.41%
64.73%
53.00%
34.89%
4.28%
Counties
Population Units Submitted
1 - 9,999 70O 2
10,000 - 24,999 886 26
25,000 - 49,999 618 42
50,000 - 99,999 379 96
100,000 - 249,999 273 123
250,000 or more 187 144
3043 433
% 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 Distdct of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
Percent
0.29%
2.93%
6.80%
25.33%
45.05%
77.01%
14.23%
77.01%
58.04%
43.27%
27.80%
18.40%
14.23%
Percent
78.85%
29
City and County Reports Submitted (including ineligible and stub reports)
for Fiscal Years Ended 1998 Compared to Total Cities and Counties
Units*
Alabama 446
Alaska 149
Adzona 87
Arkansas 491
California 471
Colorado 269
Connecticut 179
Delaware 57
Florida 394
Georgia 535
Hawaii 1
Idaho 200
Illinois 2721
Indiana 1577
Iowa 950
Kansas 1997
Kentucky 434
Louisiana 302
Maine 489
MarTland 156
Massachusetts 351
Michigan 1778
Minnesota 2648
Mississippi 295
Missouri 1268
Montana 128
Nebraska 990
Nevada 19
New Hampshire 234
New Jersey 567
New Mexico 99
New York 1544
North Carolina 527
North Dakota 1704
Ohio 2251
Oklahoma 592
Oregon 240
Pennsylvania 2569
Rhode Island 39
South Carolina 269
South Dakota 1265
Tennessee 343
Texas 1177
Utah 230
Vermont 286
Virginia 231
Washington 275
West Virginia 232
Wisconsin 1849
Wyoming 97
Total 36ooo
Source: 1997 Census of Governments
Cities Counties
Submitters % Submitted Units* Submittem
12 2.69% 67 1
10 6.71% 12 5
30 34.48% 15 5
7 1.43% 75 0
196 41.61% 57 20
37 13.75% 62 18
45 25.14% 0 0
2 3.51% 3 1
142 36.04% 66 33
45 8.41% 156 18
1 100.00% 3 3
6 3.00% 44 4
105 3.86% 102 11
13 0.82% 91 2
21 2.21% 99 4
25 1.25% 105 4
12 2.76% 119 2
8 2.65% 60 5
8 1,64% 16 1
12 7.69% 23 11
6 1.71% 12 0
50 2.82% 83 19
81 3.06% 87 11
5 1.69% 82 0
43 3.39% 114 7
5 3.91% 54 3
5 0.51% 93 0
8 42.11% 16 3
5 2.14% 10 0
1 0.18% 21 0
3 3.03% 33 2
30 1.94% 57 10
66 12.52% 100 48
5 0.29% 53 1
97 4.31% 88 41
14 2.36% 77 2
37 15.42% 36 11
22 0.86% 66 14
6 15.38% 0 0
26 9.67% 46 14
4 0.32% 66 0
23 6.71% 93 7
152 12.91% 254 47
20 8.70% 29 3
0 0.00% 14 0
36 15.58% 95 23
30 10.91% 39 9
0 0.00% 55 0
19 1.03% 72 9
5 5.15% 23 1
1541 4.28% 3043 433
% Submitted
1.49%
41.67%
33.33%
0.00%
35.09%
29.03%
0.00%
33.33%
50.00%
11.54%
100.00%
9.09%
10.78%
2.20%
4.04%
3.81%
1.68%
8.33%
6.25%
47.83%
0.00%
22.89%
12.64%
0.00%
6.14%
5.56%
0.00%
18.75%
0.00%
0.00%
6.06%
17.54%
48.00%
1.89%
46.59%
2.60%
30.56%
21.21%
0.00%
30.43%
0.00%
7.53%
18.50%
10.34%
0.00%
24.21%
23,08%
0.00%
12.50%
4.35%
14.23%
Cities includes cities, municipalities, parishes, villages, and townships
3O