2012-04-11 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Government -wide financial statements The government -wide financial statements are designed to provide readers with abroad overview of the City's finances, in a manner similar to a pri vate- sector busi tress. The statement of net assets presents information on all of the City's assets and liabilities, with the difference between the two reported as net assets. Over ti me, i ncreases or decreases i n net assets may serve as a useful i ndi cator of whether the f nanci al position of the City is i mprovi ng or deteriorati ng. The statement of activities presents information showing how the City's net assets changed during the most recent fiscal year. All changes in net assets are reported as soon as the underlying event giving rise to the change occurs, regardless of the tieing of related cash flows. Thus, revenues and expenses are reported in this statement for some items that will only result in cash flows in future fiscal periods (e.g., uncollected taxes and earned but unused vacation leave). Both of the government -wide financial statements distinguish functionsof the City that are principally supported by taxes and intergovernmental revenue (governmental activities) from other functions that are intended to recover all or a significant portion of their costs through user fees and charges (business-type activities). The governmental activities of the City include general government, public safety, public works, economic development, culture and recreation, miscellaneous and interest on long -term debt. The business -type activities of the City include water, sewer, and storm water. The government -wide financial statements start on page 27 of this report. Fund financial statements A fund is a grouping of related accounts that is used to maintain control over resources that have been segregated for specific activities or objectives. The City, like other State and local governments, uses fund accounting to ensure and demonstrate compliance with finance - related legal requirements. All of the funds of the City can be divided into two categories: governmental funds and proprietary funds. Governmental fund Governmental fundsare used to account for essentially the same functions reported asgovernmental activities in the government -wide fi nanci al statements. However, unlike the government -wide financial statements, governmental fund fi nanci al statements focus on near -term inflows and outflows of spendable resources, as wel I as on balances of spendable resources available at the end of the fiscal year. Such information maybe useful in evaluating a government's near -term financing requirements. Because the focus of governmental funds is narrower than that of the government -wide financial statements, it is useful to compare the information presented for governmental fundswith similar information presented for governmental activitiesin the government -wide financial statements. By doing so, readers may better understand the long -term impact by the government's near -term financing decisions. Both the governmental fund balance sheet and the governmental fund statement of revenues, expenditures and changes in fund balances provide reconciliation to facilitate this comparison between governmental fundsand governmental activities. The City maintains 14 individual governmental funds, 5 of which are Debt Service funds. Information is presented separately in the governmental fund balance sheet and in the governmental fund statement of revenues, expenditures and changes in fund balances for the General, Debt Service, and Park funds. Data from the other 7 governmental funds are combined into a single, aggregated presentation. I ndividual fund data for each of these non -mayor governmental funds is provided in the form of combining statementsor scheduleselsewhere in this report. The City adopts an annual appropriated budget for its General fund. A budgetary comparison statement has been provided for the General fund to demonstrate compliance with this budget. The basic governmental fund financial statements start on page 32 of this report -16-