To; Town of Golden Mayor and Councillors
Financial plan 2015
The town is currently inviting the community to give input
at budget consultation meetings. I am out of town but I wanted to make the
following observations and ask the following questions.
Chief Administration Officer Wilsgard and Chief Financial
Officer Vass are to be commended for preparing and presenting to the public the
5-year financial plan in a significantly improved format, a format that now
clearly shows the state of the town’s finances.
There are three significant changes in the format from
previous budgets;
- The budget papers now separate out the operating budget from the capital budget.
- The grants received from senior levels of government are now allocated between the operating budget and the capital budget
- Amortization is included as an operating expense.
Together these changes were required to make the budgeting
process consistent with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and
present a far more accurate and transparent picture of the town’s financial
condition.
My questions to
Council are;
Given that the budget for 2015 shows an operating deficit of
$1.3 million growing to a deficit of $1.4 in 2016;
- Does Council plan to continue running deficit budgets?
- Does Council have any strategies to eliminate or reduce the annual operating deficit?
As I am unable to attend the budget consultation meeting, I
would appreciate a written response from Council.
Respectfully yours
Keith W Hern
