The Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet is the blog of the Local Government Commission staff. Click below to sign up to receive email alerts when new blog posts are released.

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For announcements and resources related to ARPA funds and the impacts of COVID-19, visit our Local Government ARPA Resources page.

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Sign Up for IRS Alerts on Federal, State and Local Government

​The IRS offers a free "alert" service for items of interest to Federal, State, and local governments.

Uniform Guidance Procurement Requirements Certain Dollar Thresholds Increased

Earlier this year we released Memorandum 2018-06 (and an addendum) that discussed at length the Uniform Guidance Procurement Standard that became effective for most units at July 1, 2018.&n

New Accounting Requirement for Building Inspection Fee Revenue and Expenditures of That Revenue ***Revised July 5, 2018***

​The message below was sent out on July 2nd and has generated a number of questions from recipients.  We believe this revised message will help answer those questions. 
 
While the language in the budget bill (reference corrected to Section XXI page 162 below) was not specific, it is our belief that the inspection fees referred to are those that are char

New Accounting Requirement for Building Inspection Fee Revenue and Expenditures of That Revenue

​An item in the 2018 budget bill (S.L.

System Development Fees and Capital Reserve Funds

​We have been getting a lot of questions recently about system development fees (SDFs) (formerly knowns as impact fees) and the need to account for them in capital reserve funds as of July 1, 2018.

Kara Millonzi at the SOG has some excellent blog posts on SDFs.  We highly recommend you review them thoroughly if your unit charges SDFs.

Divestment from Companies Boycotting Israel

​Along with eliminating the certification requirement associated with the Iran Divestment Act, S.L.2017-193 also imposes a new divestment requirement on State and local governments. 
 
Governments are now prohibited from contracting with companies that are boycotting Israel.  This law went into effect when it was passed by the General Assembly and signed

GASB 73 and GASB 75

Units Offering OPEB that are Subject to GASB Statement 75 Reporting Requirements

Please note that this discussion does not apply to any GASB Statement 74 reporting (units that are holding assets to meet OPEB obligations) or timeline you have established with your actuaries. 

​New Deadlines for Filing W-2s and Certain 1099-Misc

The PATH Act, which went into effect in December, 2015, has brought some changes to the filing deadlines for W-2s, W-3s, and certain 1099-Misc forms for the 2015 tax year.
 
All copies of W-2s and W-3s are now due by January 31, 2017.

Hard Copies of Audits to DEQ and DOT Not Necessary

We have been asked by the NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the NC Department of Transportation (DOT) to notify local governments and public authorities and their auditors that it is not necessary to send hard copies of audit reports directly to them.  They prefer to obtain the electronic copies of the repor

Fraud Alert!

​SLGFD staff has just learned of a fraud scheme that may involve governments across the country.  We know of at least one government here in NC that was contacted but fortunately experienced no loss.   
Perpetrators are pretending to be from a legitimate vendor of the government and convincing government staff to change the bank account number that the electron

Take Two - Accounting for Effects of Recent Court Ruling on Impact Fees

​I have heard from quite a few of you about my message yesterday regarding the accounting treatment of refunds resulting from the recent court ruling on impact fees!  
 
I apparently did not make myself very clear and for that I apologize.

Accounting for Effects of Recent Court Ruling on Impact Fees

​Many of you have heard by now of the recent court ruling regarding certain impact fees charged by various local governments.

New Memos on Roles of Auditors and Local Governments

​New Memos Available:

Memo #2017-07:  Auditors Responsibilities and the Role of the SLGFD Staff
Memo #2017-08:  Local Entities Responsibilities for the Financial Reports and Records

IRS Video on How to Prove Tax Exempt Status for Local

We periodically get asked about how a local government can "prove" it is tax-exempt, usually in conjunction with a grant application.  This video from the IRS will explain that and more, including why you don't need an IRS determination letter to be tax-exempt. 

Election Workers - Wage Reporting and Withholding

​The Federal, State and Local Governments division of the IRS has released guidance on payroll reporting and withholding for election workers.  This guidance may be accessed here:

Contact Us

How can we help? Contact SLGFD staff: (919) 814-4300 or SLGFD@nctreasurer.com.