Accomplishments 2005 - 2006 return to top

BONDS ISSUED

The Department managed the issuance of $5,000,000 in general obligation bonds on June 1, 2006 to finance the purchase of open space ($3,500,000), various capital improvements to School Department buildings ($800,000) and for road improvements to various arterial roads in Town ($700,000). The Town received an interest rate of 4.12% and maintained its favorable bond rating of Aa2. South Kingstown is one of only three Rhode Island communities that have a bond rating of Aa2 or higher.

MUNICIPAL DEFICITS ACT

During the 2003 legislative session the Rhode Island General Assembly amended RI General Law §45-12-22, which relates to indebtedness of cities and towns and specifically addresses municipal deficits. The purpose of the law is to ensure that municipalities monitor financial operations on an ongoing basis, execute a rapid response to budget problems and maintain a balanced budget in compliance with RI General Law §44-35-10.

The law requires the Finance Director to continuously monitor the financial operations of the Town by tracking actual versus budgeted revenues and expenditures and to submit monthly reports to the Town Council and quarterly reports to the State Office of Municipal Affairs certifying the status of the budget. All reports were submitted in a timely manner during FY2005-2006.

FINANCIAL AUDIT

As part of the annual financial audit process the Finance Department was successful in closing the prior fiscal year trial balances and completing the necessary work papers for the Town’s outside independent auditors to review. All deadlines mandated by the State Auditor General were met. The Town received an unqualified opinion on its financial statements, which indicates that the Town’s financial report is in full compliance with generally accepted accounting principles.

CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

The Town recently received notification from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) that it had been awarded the Certificate of Achievement Award for the FY2005 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). This represents the sixteenth consecutive year that the Town has received this prestigious award. The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting; its attainment represents a significant accomplishment for the Town. The award could not have been received without the dedicated team approach the entire Finance staff took in the development of the report.

SCHOOL BUDGET REVIEW

The Finance Department completed a comprehensive review of the projected FY2005-2006 estimated expenditures and revenues for the School Department budget and the School Committee proposed FY2006-2007 budget. Based on the review, expenditure revisions of $391,206 were made to the FY2006-2007 school budget without any reduction to programs.

INVENTORY OF INFRASTRUCTURE ASSETS

The Finance Department developed an RFP for the valuation of infrastructure assets and requested proposals from appraisal companies to complete the valuation. The Town Council awarded a contract to RCI Appraisal Co. on June 26, 2006 to develop the valuations necessary to comply with the financial reporting requirements mandated by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement #34. The Town must retroactively report all infrastructure fixed assets as of June 30, 2007. Currently, all fixed assets have been recorded with the exception of infrastructure fixed assets. It is anticipated that the valuation of infrastructure assets will be completed and included in the FY2005-2006 financial audit, a year earlier than required.

Goals 2006 - 2007 return to top

• Develop a request for proposals for actuarial services for post-employment benefits.
• Finalize the valuations for all infrastructure assets and add the inventory to the financial report of the Town.
• Issue bonds to finance various capital projects identified in the FY2007-2008 Capital Improvement Program.
• Identify and monitor opportunities for refinancing outstanding debt during favorable market conditions.
• Continue to pursue alternate means of collecting delinquent motor vehicle and tangible property taxes. While the Town enjoys one of the best tax collection rates in the State, we must continue to look for new alternatives in collecting overdue taxes.
• Continue to evaluate potential alternative revenue sources or expenditure reductions that could be utilized to reduce reliance on the property tax to finance South Kingstown services.