Winder’s city government weathered the second year of the national recession with its finances intact.
But the annual financial report released to the public Monday night shows it was not an easy achievement.
For fiscal year 2010, which ended June 30, the city’s general operating revenues were stable, dropping by only $93,000, and spending was significantly below the previous year’s level due to a 2009 personnel reduction and other measures.
Nevertheless, the city’s expenditures continued to significantly outpace revenues from taxes, fees, fines and other governmental funding sources.
So the city administration transferred $3.5 million from the city’s utility operations to bridge the shortfall.
The Water and Sewer Fund, which is the largest enterprise fund, had a net profit of $1.7 million, and all of that, plus another $400,000 from the fund’s reserves, was tapped.
The Gas Fund had a similar net profit of $1.7 million, and $1.3 million of that was used to cover the government’s operations.
A third transfer of about $143,000 was made from smaller business-type funds, though they experienced a significant operating loss for the year.
However, Chris Hollifield of Rushton & Company, told the council in a brief audit presentation that the city’s financial position is OK.
“All in all, the city is healthy when we look at the fund balances,” he said.
The water/sewer and gas funds together ended the fiscal year with $11 million in unrestricted assets available for future needs, according to the FY2010 comprehensive annual financial report prepared by the city’s finance staff.
Hollifield said the financial statements in the report fairly represent the city’s financial activities for FY2010.
He also noted that the city’s internal controls, which are a government’s internal checks and balances to ensure funds are handled correctly, are good. And he praised the work of the finance department staff and their director, Leslie Henderson.
“The audit went very smooth,” Hollifield said.
Following his brief presentation, Henderson presented her monthly financial briefing about the status of the city’s revenues and expenditures for the current fiscal year.
She said revenues at the end of October were slightly below where they ideally should be one-third of the way through the budget, but she said the pace of spending also was slower.
A chart she distributed to the council shows that as of Nov. 1, the city had about $5.9 million in operating cash and receivables.
To read the full coverage of the council’s Nov. 9 meeting, please see next week’s edition of the Barrow Journal.
