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CITY OF ROSEVILLE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS DECEMBER 31, 2011 NOTE 1 - SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES A. Reporting entity The City of Roseville is a municipal corporation formed under Section 412 of Minnesota State Statutes and operates under a Council- Manager form of government. The five- member Council and Mayor are elected on rotating terms in each odd - numbered year. The financial statements present the City and its component units. The City includes all funds, organizations, institutions, agencies, departments and offices that are not legally separate from such. Component units are legally separate organizations for which the elected officials of the City are financially accountable and are included within the basic financial statements of the City because of the significance of their operational or financial relationships with the City. The City is considered financially accountable for a component unit if it appoints a voting majority of the organization's governing body and it is able to impose its will on the organization by significantly influencing the programs, projects, activities or level of services performed or provided by the organization or there is a potential for the organization to provide specific financial benefits to or impose specific financial burdens on, the City. As a result of applying the component unit definition criteria above, certain organizations are presented in this report as follows: Discretely presented component unit. The Housing & Redevelopment Authority (HRA) is responsible for providing housing programs and promoting safe, decent and affordable housing options for the community. The HRA Board of Directors is appointed by a recommendation of the Mayor and approval of the City Council. The HRA can give, sell, buy and transfer property, provide grants, loans, leases and abatements and raise funds through several financing tools. The HRA may levy a special property tax to fund housing improvement plans within the City. The levy is separate from the City's general fund levy. The HRA annually submits a budget to the City Council who has the final authority to approve the HRA levy each year. B. Government -wide and fund financial statements The government -wide financial statements (i.e., the statement of net assets and the statement of changes in net assets) report information on all of the nonfiduciary activities of the primary government and its component units. Governmental activities, which normally are supported by taxes and intergovernmental revenues, are reported separately from business -type activities, which rely to a significant extent on user fees and charges for support. The statement of activities demonstrates the degree to which the direct expenses of a given function or segment, are offset by program revenues. Direct expenses are those that are clearly identifiable with a specific function or segment. 43