1. Message from Auditor Blaha

2. Pension: First Certification for 2021 Fire State Aid

3. TIF: Timely TIF Plan Filing Avoids Problems

4. Avoiding Pitfall: Town Disbursement Process

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1. Message from Auditor Blaha

Mark your calendars! The deadline to request Local Fiscal Recovery Funds from the American Rescue Plan is Monday, October 4, 2021. These funds are meant to assist counties, cities, and townships with their financial recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here are some ways you may use ARP funds (taken from the MMB website):

• Responding to the public health emergency
• Serving the hardest hit and addressing inequities
• Addressing negative economic impacts
• Improving access to water and broadband infrastructure

Local governments were, and continue to be, on the front lines of the pandemic. These funds are a way for our local entities to recover and look forward with optimism.

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2. Pension: First Certification for 2021 Fire State Aid

We are pleased to announce that the Office of the State Auditor (OSA) certified nearly 60 percent of volunteer fire relief associations and other pension entities as meeting all reporting requirements and are eligible for the Department of Revenue to determine their qualification for 2021 fire and supplemental state aid in the first round of disbursements. State aid will be disbursed on or about October 1 for those plans that met the reporting requirements.

A list of the 2021 fire state aid and supplemental state aid amounts will be posted on the OSA website when it becomes available.

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3. TIF: Timely TIF Plan Filing Avoids Problems

After a new TIF plan is approved, or after a modification of a TIF plan is approved, copies of the plan must be filed with the state in a timely manner. To learn more, please visit our page: Timely TIF Plan Filing Avoids Problems.

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

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4. Avoiding Pitfall: Town Disbursement Process

Adequate support for payments is a fundamental requirement of a sound accounting system. We recommend that all invoices clearly show dates and initials indicating approval for payment. We also suggest that invoices contain the general ledger coding for posting transactions to the Town ledger.

Prior to Town Board meetings, supervisors should fully review each claim for appropriateness and accuracy. The minutes should identify the claims approved. Towns can accomplish this by attaching a list of claims, signed by the Board Chair, to the meeting minutes.

This Avoiding Pitfall is available on our website.