Finance Report Award CityMEMORANDUM
November 8, 2004
TO:
The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM:
Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT:
GFOA Certificate of Achievement
The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) notified the City that the
Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the fiscal year ended June 30,
2003, qualified for a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting.
This is the sixteenth consecutive year that the City has received the certificate.
Michael C. Van Milligen
MCVM/jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Ken TeKippe, Finance Director
Dear Mr. TeKippe:
We are pleased to notify you that your comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR) for the fiscal year ended June 30,
2003, 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. Congratulations for having satisfied the high standards of the
program. We hope that your example will encourage others in their efforts to achieve and maintain an appropriate standard
of excellence in financial reporting.
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 Services 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. As the designated individual we have enclosed your AFRA.
Your Certificate of Achievement plaque will be shipped to you under seperate cover in about eight weeks. We hope that you
will arrange for a formal presentation of the Certificate and Award of Financial Reporting Achievement, and that appropriate
publicity will 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, enclosed is the Certificate Program
"Results" for reports with fiscal years ended during 2002 representing the most recent statistics available.
current holder of a Certificate of Achievement may include a reproduction of the award in its immediately subsequent
AFR. 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
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 December 31, 2004.
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