2019 Vol.13 Issue 4 September - Laserfiche WebLink

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Gem Lake News Page 2 of 6 Part of the settlement imposed on Water Gremlin for pollution related activities, requires them to pay for the planting of trees in affected cities, such as Gem Lake. The first round of planting was scheduled for September, 2019; however, due to logistical challenges related to the development operations at the Gem Lake Villas project, this initial planning has been postponed to Spring, 2020. This site was selected because there is a portion of Gem Lake owned open space on the edge of the project. Water Gremlin Update (continued from page 1) Audit Complete for 2018 (continued from page 1) In terms of financial results for 2018, Knopik had a number of observations. The Minnesota Office of the State Auditor recommends that cities have no less than six m onths of operating revenues in reserve at any one time, to account for the long periods of time between county property tax payments to municipalities. At present, Gem Lake has approximately 11 months, which is good. This increase in reserves is due partly to an increase in property taxes in 2018. Tax revenues, as a portion of overall income in the city, increased one percent from the year before, increasing from 76% in 2017 to $77% in 2018. License and permit revenues increased 2% in 2018, and miscellaneous income grew by one percent over the year before. In terms of expenditures, general government, and public safety costs were down in 2018, as compared to the year before, while conservation and development and public works expenditues in 2018 were up slightly. General government costs decreased from 36% of total expenditures in 2017 to 34% in 2018. Public safety costs were down significantly, due primarily to Gem Lake’s switch to White Bear Lake for police services. Expenditures were 19% of the total in 2018, compared to 34% of the total in 2017. Conservation and development expenditure accounted for 30% of costs in 2018, compared to 22% a year earlier. Finally public works were 17% of total costs in 2018, compared to 8% the year before. In terms of the Gem Lake Sewer Fund, there was a slight increase in revenues in 2018. Expenses increased by $37,000 in 2018 over 2017, due to the televised sewer system inspection and flushing. The unrestricted net position of the sewer fund is $442,851. The sewer fund has a positive cash flow from its operations. Auditors pointed out several material weaknesses, which exist in Gem Lake and many other small cities in the State. We lack complete segregation of duties on financial reporting duties, internal controls for utility reconciliation, and several other items. This is due to the small size of the staff available to perform the necessary tasks. The complete audit is available for viewing at Heritage Hall.