OSA Weekly Update - 8/25/2023

1. Message from Auditor Blaha

2. Deadline: TIF Excess Increment

3. Avoiding Pitfall: Ticket Sales

1. Message from Auditor Blaha

Happy Minnesota State Fair to all who celebrate! I am a big fair fan, from trying the new foods to entering in the crop art competition. The idea of a “Great Minnesota Get Together” is more important than ever. So whether you brave the crowds to get your bucket of Sweet Martha’s cookies or would rather enjoy your friends social media posts in air conditioning, take a moment this week to celebrate our state and all the good we can do together.

2. Deadline: TIF Excess Increment

If a TIF district had excess increment calculated for 2022 it must be used for allowable purposes or returned to the county auditor by September 30th. For more information, please see our article, Excess Increment Deadline Reminder.

If you have any questions please contact us at TIF@osa.state.mn.us.

3. Avoiding Pitfall: Ticket Sales

When cash is involved, public entities need to take extra precautions to prevent fraud. One situation where cash is prevalent is when tickets are sold, for example, at a school event or for a public swimming pool. Ticket sales present an opportunity for “skimming,” the taking of cash before it is recorded on the entity’s books.

Using pre-numbered tickets is one method to guard against skimming. When the sale of tickets is reported, the person responsible for the ticket sales should turn in the corresponding amount of cash and the correct number of unsold tickets, and obtain a receipt for what they've turned in.

To properly document ticket sales, entities should develop a form that records the starting and ending numbers on the tickets sold at an event and the total amount of money collected. The number of tickets sold multiplied by the ticket price should equal the amount of money collected.

The form that records this information should be signed by the ticket seller(s) and maintained by the entity as supporting documentation. Someone other than the ticket seller(s) should confirm that the number on the first ticket used for the next event begins where the numbers on the tickets for the prior event ended. Following these precautions can reduce an entity's risk of an employee skimming from ticket sales.

The full Avoiding Pitfall is available on the OSA website.