State Auditor's E-Update - 8/12/2022

1. Message from Auditor Blaha

2. Pension: Firefighter Marriage Dissolutions

3. Reminder: Copies of Completed TIF Forms

4. Avoiding Pitfall: Monitoring Risks with Certificates of Deposit

1. Message from Auditor Blaha

This coming Tuesday, August 16 at 11:00 a.m. my office is hosting a hybrid listening session for the release of the 2021 Asset Forfeiture Report. This listening session will be an opportunity to hear initial reactions from local government policy makers, law enforcement representatives, and other stakeholders involved in criminal justice work.

If you would like to join us virtually, please register on Zoom.

2. Pension: Firefighter Marriage Dissolutions

The 2022 Pension and Retirement Bill that was passed into law in May includes provisions that permit distributions following the divorce of a fire relief association member, and provides options regarding these distributions. While relief associations have traditionally paid amounts to the former spouse (or “alternate payee”) after a relief association member gets divorced, the 2022 law changes expressly authorize these payments. See the July 2022 Pension Division Newsletter for more information and for details regarding new options that a relief association may choose to implement.

3. Reminder: Copies of Completed TIF Forms

As a reminder, authorities must provide copies of completed TIF Annual Reporting Forms and the Annual Disclosure to their county auditor and, if the authority is not the municipality, to the municipality’s governing body.

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

4. Avoiding Pitfall: Monitoring Risks with Certificates of Deposit

Government entities are permitted to invest in Certificates of Deposit (CDs) that are “fully insured” by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Each depositor has up to $250,000 of FDIC coverage at any individual bank. Since the FDIC insures not only the principal but accrued interest as well, government entities should purchase CDs in amounts just less than the FDIC limit, so that accrued interest is protected.

Often, government entities will use brokers, banks and certificate-of-deposit placement services to purchase CDs. As a result, it is imperative that a government entity investing in CDs set up a system to monitor all CDs purchased to ensure they do not exceed the FDIC limit at any given bank. Purchasing multiple CDs from a bank that together exceed the FDIC limit will result in losses to the government entity should that bank fail.

The Avoiding Pitfall is available on the OSA website.