State Auditor's E-Update - 4/23/2021
1. Message from Auditor Blaha
2. Relief Associations: Protecting Private Member Data
3. TIF: When Does an Authority Need to File Annual TIF Reports?
4. Avoiding Pitfall: Petty Cash (Imprest) Funds – Part II
1. Message from Auditor Blaha
This week, the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial came down: guilty on all three counts for the murder of George Floyd. The trial laid bare the need for all of us to work to ensure equal justice for Black, Brown, and Indigenous Minnesotans. Here's the link to read my full statement: https://www.osa.state.mn.us/news/updates/press-release-articles/2021/statement-from-state-auditor-julie-blaha-april-20-2021/.
The world is still watching Minnesota. We have the chance to use this moment to make our communities more fair at every level. Now is a good time for all of us to re-examine our policies and practices in light of what we learned over the past year. Even where we built governmental infrastructure with the best of intentions, fresh eyes may find cracks in the foundation that let discrimination leak through. I hope you will seize this moment to improve our communities.
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: https://mn.gov/admin/data-practices/.
3. TIF: When Does an Authority Need to File Annual TIF Reports?
The 2020 TIF Annual Forms will be made available in the first week of May. Each year we receive questions concerning when an authority needs to start (and when they can stop) filing Annual TIF Reports.
The TIF Act requires that reporting begin for the year the district is certified.
The authority must continue to file annual reports for the TIF district until the district is decertified, and all tax increment revenue has been expended or returned to the county auditor.
For more details please view the following TIF Topic: When Does an Authority Need to File Annual TIF Reports? (https://www.osa.state.mn.us/training-guidance/guidance/tif-topics-articles/when-does-an-authority-need-to-file-annual-tif-reports/)
4. Avoiding Pitfall: Petty Cash (Imprest) Funds – Part II
Part I of the Petty Cash (Imprest Funds) Avoiding Pitfalls series discussed the establishment of petty cash (imprest) funds. This entry provides information on making withdrawals from these funds.
There are two possible methods of withdrawing petty cash funds: the reimbursement method and the advance method. When using the reimbursement method, an individual purchases an authorized item with personal funds, provides the original detailed vendor receipt to the petty cash fund's custodian, and is then reimbursed from the petty cash fund. This method is less complicated than the advance method. There is no risk of loss of petty cash funds due to the purchaser failing to buy the item and/or to submit supporting documentation for the purchase. It also allows the petty cash fund to be replenished more quickly than with the advance method. For these reasons, the reimbursement method is generally preferred.
This Avoiding Pitfall is available on our website here: https://www.osa.state.mn.us/audit-resources/audit-guidance/avoiding-pitfalls-articles/petty-cash-imprest-funds-part-ii/