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Chief Administrative Office and Auditor-Controller's Office recommending the Board approve and ratify the attached schedule of budget amendments, and authorize the Chair to sign the related budget transfer form, reflecting final Fiscal Year 2018-19 fund balance numbers and related offsetting entries to balance each affected fund, for inclusion in the Fiscal Year 2019-20 Adopted Budget, and made pursuant to the Fiscal Year 2019-20 Adopted Budget Resolution (162-2019). It is recommended that the Board approve and ratify the schedule of budget amendments with a 4/5 vote.
FUNDING: Countywide Budget.
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The Chief Administrative Office was advised in August that the County would likely not have final fund balance numbers for FY 2018-19 year-end available until mid-September.
Not having final fund balance numbers until later in September limited the ability for Departments to prepare, and for the Chief Administrative Office to process and evaluate, changes to the Recommended Budget in time for the Board to adopt the Budget prior to the statutorily required deadline of October 2nd. Therefore, the Board adopted the FY 2019-20 Budget Resolution in September in order to officially adopt the Recommended Budget as the final Adopted Budget, and delegated authority to the Auditor-Controller, in coordination with the Chief Administrative Office, to balance affected funds within certain parameters once those fund balance figures were known.
The General Fund ended FY 2018-19 with a fund balance of $30,000,153. Of that fund balance, $18,558,011 was already included in the Recommended Budget to fund previous commitments to the ACO Fund ($4,580,284) and to fund General Fund costs and on-going operations ($13,977,727).
The Auditor-Controller, following specific language included in the attached Budget Resolution, was authorized to use any additional General Fund fund balance amount to increase established Reserves/Designations (the CalPERS Designation and the General Reserve), decrease Property Tax - Current Secured revenue by one percent, and increase the Public Safety Payment Reserve. Those budget adjustments are also reflected on the attached schedule of budget amendments, and totaled $4,509,835.
The remaining fund balance equaled $6.9 million, and pursuant to the Adopted Budget Resolution this additional funding was placed into the General Fund Appropriation for Contingency, pending a later Board discussion regarding recommended uses of that funding. It is anticipated that at least $3.8 million is attributable to previously approved projects in the ACO fund. The separate budget discussion regarding possible uses of remaining funds is currently planned to be held during the November 5, 2019 regular meeting.
There are no new policy issues associated with the attached schedule of adjustments. On a limited basis, some funds that ended the fiscal year with a fund balance that was lower than anticipated in the FY 2019-20 Recommended Budget, and which did not have funds available in an Appropriation for Contingency or in a Designation, are recommended to be balanced by increasing or decreasing other related revenue and/or expense accounts.
Please also recall that the required Budget Hearing was held in June. This means that approval of increases or additions to the Budget will require a 4/5 vote of the Board, regardless of whether the decision is made prior to or following October 2nd. Pursuant to statute, items introduced prior to the close of the June budget hearing will require a 3/5 vote. It is recommended that the Board approve and ratify the schedule of budget amendments with a 4/5 vote.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
The Board conducted the Budget Hearing on the FY 2019-20 Recommended Budget on June 17, 2019 (Legistar #19-0853).
The FY 2019-20 Budget Resolution was adopted by the Board on September 24, 2019 (Legistar #19-1410).
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
None.
CONTACT
Don Ashton, Chief Administrative Officer
Shawne Corley, Assistant Chief Administrative Officer