The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2015 budget awardDeschutes County Board of Commissioners 1300 NW Wall St., Suite 200, Bend, OR 97701-1960 (541) 388-6570 -Fax (541) 385-3202 -www.deschutes.org AGENDA REQUEST & STAFF REPORT For Board Business Meeting of May 4, 2015 DATE: April 10, 20 IS FROM: Wayne Lowry. Finance X6559 TITLE OF AGENDA ITEM: Presentation of Awards from the Government Finance Officers Association for the 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) and for the 2015 Deschutes County Budget. PUBLIC HEARING ON THIS DATE? No BACKGROUND AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The County participates in two programs sponsored by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). The first is the Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting. This awards program evaluates the annual financial report known as the CAFR against a set of national criteria for government financial reporting. The second is the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. This program evaluates the County's annual Budget document against a set of national criteria that include content related to budget and financial policies, financial planning, operations and communications. Roger Dawes, the Controller for Washington County and the GFOA representative for Oregon is here this morning to present both awards. Roger is also a past president of the Oregon Government Finance Officers Association. He will be presenting the CAFR award to Jeanine Faria and the Budget Award to Teri Maerki, long time members of the Deschutes County Finance Department. FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Continued participation in these programs enhances our financial reporting and budgeting practices and aids in the maintenance of the County's bond ratings. RECOMMENDATION & ACTION REQUESTED: Recognition of Jeanine Faria, Accounting Manager and Teri Maerki, Budget Analyst, for their efforts in financial reporting and budgeting for Deschutes County. ATTENDANCE: Jeanine Faria, Teri Maerki, Wayne Lowry. DISTRIBUTION OF DOCUMENTS: None Government Finance Officers Association 203 N. LaSalle Street -Suite 2700 Chicago, II. 60601 Phone (312) 977-9700 Fax (312) 977-4806 March 10,2015 Wayne Lowry Finance Director Deschutes County PO Box 6005 Bend OR 97708-6005 Dear Mr. Lowry: We are pleased to notify you that your comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR) for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014, qualifies for a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management Each entity submitting a report to the Certificate of Achievement review process is provided with a "Summary of Grading" form and a confidential list of comments and suggestions for possible improvements in its financial reporting techniques. Your list has been enclosed. You are strongly encouraged to implement the recommended improvements into the next report and submit it to the program. If it is unclear what must be done to implement a comment or if there appears to be a discrepancy between the comment and the information in the CAFR, please contact the Technical Scrvices Center (312) 977-9700 and ask to speak with a Certificate of Achievement Program in-house reviewer. Certificate of Achievement program policy requires that written responses to the comments and suggestions for improvement accompany the next fiscal year's submission. Your written responses should provide detail about how you choose to address each item that is contained within this report. These responses will be provided to those Special Review Committee members participating in the review. When a Certificate of Achievement is awarded to a government, an Award of Financial Reporting Achievement (AFRA) is also presented to the individual(s) or department designated by the government as primarily responsible for its having earned the Certificate. Enclosed is an AFRA for: Finance Department, Deschutes County Continuing participants will find a certificate and brass medallion enclosed with these results. First-time recipients will find a certificate enclosed with these results followed by a plaque in about 10 weeks. We hope that you will arrange for a formal presentation of the Certificate and Award of Financial Reporting Achievement, and that appropriate publicity wi II be given to this notable achievement A sample news release has been enclosed. We suggest that you provide copies of it to local newspapers, radio stations and television stations. In addition, details of recent recipients of the Certificate of Achievement and other information about Certificate Program results are available in the "Awards Program" area of our website, www.gfoa.org . A current holder of a Certificate of Achievement may include a reproduction of the award in its immediately subsequent CAFR. A camera ready copy of your Certificate is enclosed for that purpose. If you reproduce your Certificate in your next report, please refer to the enclosed instructions. A Certificate of Achievement is valid for a period of one year. To continue to participate in the Certificate of Achievement Program it will be necessary for you to submit your next CAFR to our review process. In order to expedite your submission we have enclosed a Certificate of Achievement Program application form to facilitate a timely submission of your next report. This form should be completed and sent (postmarked) with three copies of your report, three copies of your application, three copies of your written responses to the program's comments and suggestions for improvement from the prior year, and any other pertinent material with the appropriate fee by Decem ber 31 , 20 IS. Your continued interest in and support of the Certificate of Achievement Program is most appreciated. If we may be of any further assistance, please contact Delores Smith (dsmith@gfoa.org or (312) 578-5454). Sincerely, Government Finance Officers Association Stephen J. Gauthier, Director Technical Services Center SJG/ds 03/10/2015 Government Finance Officers Association 203 N, LaSalle Street -Suite 2700 Chicago, IL 60601 Phone (312) 977·9700 Fax (312) 977·4806 NEWS RELEASE For Infonnation contact Stephen Gauthier (312) 977-9700 (Chicago)--The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to Deschutes County by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR), The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management An Award of Financial Reporting Achievement has been awarded to the individual(s), department or agency designated by the government as primarily responsible for preparing the award-winning CAFR. This has been presented to: Finance Department, Deschutes County The CAFR has becnjudged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program including demonstrating a constructive "spirit offull disclosure" to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR. The GFOA is a nonprofit professional association serving approximately 17,500 government finance professionals with offices in Chicago, IL, and Washington, D.C. I PRESENTATION OF THE CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT FOR EXCELLENCE IN FINANCIAL REPORTING The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting. The Certificate program thereby advocates that recipients be formally recognized for their outstanding accomplishments. If you would like a formal presentation of the Certificate of Achievement plaque, you should contact your GFOA State Reprensentative. The contact information follows: Mr. Jeff White Phone: Chief Financial Officer (503) 373-4433 Marion County Fax:555 Court Street NE (503) 373-4379 Suite 4247 Salem, OR 97301 Email: UNITED STATES JDWhite@co.marion.or.us Page I of