2009 Financial Report Available

Under state law the City of Muskegon is required to prepare an annual finacial report including a report from a qualified independent auditor. The City prepares a Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) each year which not only meets the requirements of state law but also the stringent standards of the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting program.

The City’s CAFR for 2009 is now available to the public online and will be formally presented to the City Commission at their April 12th work session.

Here are some of the major points covered in the report:

• The September 2008 financial crisis and accompanying economic recession took a heavy toll on the City’s 2009 General Fund operations. Actual 2009 General Fund expenditures and other uses were $1,055,935 under the original 2009 budget amount as significant program cuts were made during the year including: elimination of the curbside recycling program; restructuring of legal services; layoff of several employees; and elimination of positions through attrition.
• General Fund revenues for 2009 were $1,561,623 lower than originally budgeted. The falloff is primarily attributable to lower income tax and state shared revenues resulting from the recession. The City used $500,000 from its Budget Stabilization (“rainy day”) Fund to help offset the decline in revenues.
• The City’s General Fund ended 2009 with a fund balance that decreased significantly from the prior year and fell short of the policy target (10% of prior year expenditures). Further program cuts and restructuring will be made in 2010 to better align the City’s revenues and expenditures.
• Sewer Fund net assets increased $316,473 as result of a twelve percent user fee increase implemented on January 1, 2009. The Water Fund saw net assets fall $142,852 as result of lower usage brought on by the economic recession and, also, a one-time spike in operating costs resulting from a city-wide changeover in metering technology.
• At year-end 2009, the City had $27,390,885 in bonds and other long-term obligations outstanding. This represents a decrease of 6.5% from the prior year. No new debt was issued in 2009.
• The City’s limited full faith and credit bonds (bonds guaranteed by the City’s taxing powers) were upgraded by Standard & Poor’s from a rating of “A” to “A+” in early 2010. During 2009, the City’s Water System revenue bonds were upgraded from “A-” to “AA-“.

If you would like to see the complete 2009 CAFR, click on the image below: