State Auditor's E-Update - 4/15/2022

1. Message from the OSA

2. Relief Associations: Protecting Private Member Data

3. TIF: The Small City Exception

4. Avoiding Pitfall: Uncashed Checks

1. Message from the OSA

Over the next two weeks, OSA staff will begin our return to office locations across Minnesota. While our work will be hybrid, with both in-person and virtual work days, we are excited to welcome everyone back to the office.

Auditor Blaha will also begin taking more in-person meetings and attending more in-person events across the state. To schedule a meeting or invite the State Auditor to an event, please email State.Auditor@osa.state.mn.us.

2. Relief Associations: Protecting Private Member Data

As volunteer fire relief associations conduct business using electronic means, trustees should be sure that private member data is being protected in accordance with Minnesota’s Data Practices Act.

Some reporting forms that a relief association completes contain private member information. For example, the annual Schedule Form completed by defined-benefit lump-sum relief associations contains member birth dates, years of service, leaves of absence, and vesting information. A relief association, therefore, should not share a copy of the Schedule Form or other reporting forms containing private member data without first redacting (removing or covering up) all private data, unless sharing the information with an individual authorized to access the private data.

The Data Practices Office within the Minnesota Department of Administration provides information about data practices on its website.

3. TIF: The Small City Exception

Economic development TIF districts generally cannot be used to assist commercial facilities, but the small city exception permits such use of tax increment under certain conditions.

To learn more about the Small City Exception, please visit the OSA website.

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

4. Avoiding Pitfall: Uncashed Checks

Political subdivisions sometimes issue checks that are never cashed or are returned as undeliverable. Under Minnesota’s Unclaimed Property Laws, uncashed and returned checks must generally be reported to the Minnesota Department of Commerce after three years. More information is available on the Department of Commerce website.

This Avoiding Pitfall is available on our website.