How to resolve AdBlock issue? SARATOGA SPRINGS – The city Finance Department submitted to the City Council on May 5 the First Quarter Financial Report of 2020.
The submitted material is as follows:
Please note that this report is prepared on a cash basis and no adjustments have been made for receivables or payables.
REVENUES:
General Fund Revenues
Property taxes in the General Fund are recognized as revenue for the full amount levied at the time the tax roll is posted to the general ledger. The Finance Office has reviewed the payments made as of 03/31/20 and 57% has been collected or $9,137,251.
Last year at this time 55% was collected. You will recall that property taxes can be paid in four installments with the first installment due March 1. However, the City offers a discount of 2.25% if the full year is paid on or before March 1. This accounts for the greater than 25% collection rate after only the first due date has passed.
As of 03/31/20 the City has not received many of the larger revenue streams.
- Sales Tax figures include only one month since February and March collections are not distributed to the City from NYS Taxation and Finance until April and May, respectively.
- VLT Aid is paid in June.
- Hotel Occupancy Tax is paid to the City from the County on a quarterly basis. The first quarterly payment for 2020 will be received in April.
- County surplus distribution is paid on a quarterly basis too, with the first payment due in April.
- NYRA Admissions Tax is paid annually after the racing season has closed.
- The bulk of Franchise Tax is paid annually, in the last quarter of the year.
- State Aid Revenue sharing is distributed in two installments, September and December. The largest share is received in December.
- Mortgage Tax is paid semiannually in May and November.
Finance – When actual revenue is adjusted to reflect actual property tax receipts, then the Finance Office is at 24% collected.
Please note that Recreation revenues are only 11.8% as of March 31st. Recreation implemented a new online registration and payment system on January 13th. The company is required to provide a daily file that can be imported into the City’s financial software. As of 03/31 this process had not been completed and so revenue is not reported in the year to date budget report.
Taking into consideration the property tax revenue recognition issues, approximately 25% of revenues were actually received as of 03/31/20. In 2019 the adjusted approximate revenue collected was 26%.
Water and Sewer Revenues: The first quarter water and sewer bills for 2020 are mailed in April for a May 15th due date.
Capital Revenues: The City will issue a General Obligation bond in June to finance the 2020 capital projects.
EXPENSES:
General Fund Expenses
Mayor’s Office – Many contributions to outside organizations and events have been paid in full as of 03/31/20. Most other expenses are fairly consistent.
All – Liability insurance has been paid in full for the year. Additional expenses would be for claims or additional coverage. Most departments’ expenses are running at about 25%, which is on target for 03/31/20 and is consistent with the first quarter of 2019. Variances are due to seasonal expenses and grants.
Capital Expenses
Capital expenses are usually larger in the months where weather is more conducive to construction. In addition, large vehicle purchases often take many months to be built according to bid specifications.
Community Development
Since the Community Development block grants are awarded on a different schedule than the City’s fiscal year, no budget is established.
Submittal Date: May 5, 2020
