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-iii- RELEVANT FINANCIAL POLICIES The City utilizes various financial and budget policies to guide the City Council and staff when making financial decisions. The primary objective of these policies is to guarantee effective delivery of city services to residents and businesses, and to ensure protection of the City’s financial strength and flexibility through a revenue structure and long-term planning effort that is consistent with City Council goals and working capital targets. The City uses a conservative approach in making ongoing revenue assumptions by utilizing growth patterns and knowledge of the developing areas. As part of the annual budget process, the City reviews its financial and budget policies. There have been no significant changes to these policies from the previous year. MAJOR INITIATIVES The largest initiative on the City’s horizon is the TCAAP project, as previously mentioned. This project is a joint effort between the City, Ramsey County, and a master developer. When completed, this project will represent almost a 40 percent population increase to the City, as well as a significant increase to the commercial and industrial sectors. City representatives are working hard to ensure the development is a long-term, sustainable project that adds to the City’s diverse residents, businesses, and open space without burdening the existing city taxpayer. The TCAAP project is expected to be a destination site for the region and serve as a model for future developments. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the City for its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020. This is the 15th year that the City has received this prestigious award. In order to be awarded a Certificate of Achievement, the City had to publish an easily readable and efficiently organized ACFR that satisfied both accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and applicable legal requirements. A Certificate of Achievement is valid for a period of one year only. We believe that our current ACFR continues to meet the Certificate of Achievement Program’s requirements and we are submitting it to t he GFOA to determine its eligibility for another certificate. The preparation of this report would not have been possible without the efficient and dedicated service of the entire staff of the finance department, and through the helpful guidance and assistance from our auditing firm, MMKR. We wish to express our appreciation to all members of the department who assisted and contributed to the preparation of this report. Credit also must be given to the mayor and City Council for their unfailing support in maintaining the highest standards of professionalism in the management of the City’s finances. Respectfully submitted, Dave Perrault Gayle Bauman City Administrator Finance Director