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.
For announcements and resources related to ARPA funds and the impacts of COVID-19, visit our Local Government ARPA Resources page.
Take Two - Accounting for Effects of Recent Court Ruling on Impact Fees
Accounting for Effects of Recent Court Ruling on Impact Fees
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
There are two new memorandums available on our website, issued together to bring clarity to the responsibilities of both the auditors and local governments for the audited financial reports that are issued each year. In addition, the first memo seeks to clarify the role of the SLGFD staff with regards to the guidance we provide.
Memo #2017-07 can be found here.
Memo #2017-08 can be found here.
I encourage both auditors and unit staff to read both memos. If you have any questions, please contact us at (919) 814-4299.
IRS Video on How to Prove Tax Exempt Status for Local
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how you can prove your “tax-exempt" status as a government entity
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that government entities don't require an IRS determination letter to secure tax-exempt status
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what it means to be a dual-status entity
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:
As most of you know, the IRS is continuing its efforts in enforcing proper reporting of government workers and employees. We encourage you to review this guidance if it is applicable to your unit of government.
If you have any questions, please contact us at (919) 814-4299.
Pension Information for Public Housing Authorities that Participate in LGERS
With the implementation of Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement 68, Accounting and Financial Reporting for Pensions – an amendment of GASB Statement No. 27, there has been some concern that some Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) will not receive pension data in time for presentation in the unaudited reports which are due to HUD 60 days, but no later than five months, after the fiscal year end. Pension data is expected to be made available in the spring of each year; however, because not all PHAs have the same fiscal year end, the data each PHA will use will depend on where the fiscal year end falls in relation to the measurement date. As a reminder, the measurement date for each year's pension data is June 30 of the prior year and that data will be available to units the following spring. However, paragraph 48 of GASB Statement 68 requires that the measurement date should be “no earlier than the end of the employer's prior fiscal year…." With this in mind, note that PHAs with fiscal year ends of September 30 or December 31 will use pension data that will be available in the year following the reporting fiscal year end. For example, PHAs with a September 30, 2015 fiscal year end will use pension data based on the measurement date of June 30, 2015; this data will be available in the spring of 2016. PHAs with fiscal year ends of June 30 or March 31 will use data available in the spring of their reporting year.
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Transparency Legislation
In its 2015 session the General Assembly adopted language in the budget bill that concerns transparency with regards to local government finance. The legislation directs the State CIO to coordinate with counties, cities and local education agencies (school boards) to facilitate implementation of the requirements of the adopted legislation. It further directs these same entities to work with the State Controller and the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) to ensure that timely information is provided as directed by the State CIO. Finally, the LGC staff is to work with the State CIO to post data to our website that allows comparisons between the local entities providing data under this legislation. All websites are to be in place by April 1, 2016.
Our staff has met with OSBM, the State CIO, and our IT staff to determine the best approach to implementing the requirements of this legislation. We are starting out with the data that is already available from each local entity through annual audits, the AFIR, and reports to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI). While we encourage all efforts to make government more transparent, we are not advising local entities to make significant changes at this time to their websites or data presentation methods for the sole purpose of meeting the requirements of this legislation. As we continue to work with the appropriate state agencies we will keep you informed of any action needed on your part. If you have...