Changes in Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 457 require local governments to hold deferred compensation in trust for employees and their beneficiaries. Previously, IRC Section 457 required that these assets remained the property of the employer until paid or made available to the participant; as such, they were held in an agency capacity and were subject to the claims of the government’s general creditors.

This bulletin highlights changes to fire district accounting and reporting requirements, and clarifies the new auditing requirements.

GASB Statement No. 34 makes significant changes to the accounting and reporting requirements for expendable and nonexpendable trusts. The statement eliminates the designation of expendable and nonexpendable trust funds and creates new funds based on the ability to use these resources for governmental purposes.

Since 1990 the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC), through its revolving loan fund, has provided over 330 local governments and public authorities nearly $5 billion in long and short term loans to finance eligible clean water and drinking water projects.

This bulletin describes the types of loans that are currently available from the revolving fund (long term leverage loans, short term direct loans, and long term direct loans) and the proper accounting treatment for each loan type.

Issued to: County, City, Town and Village Chief Fiscal Officers

Deficiency notes may be issued during a fiscal year to finance a deficiency in any fund or funds arising from revenues being less than the amount estimated in the budget for that fiscal year. The deficiency notes may not exceed five percent of the amount of that same year’s annual budget.

The purpose of this release is to provide accounting and reporting guidance for gifts and donations restricted to use for D.A.R.E. Programs.

Chapter 97 of the Laws of 2011 established a property tax levy limit (generally referred to as the tax cap) that restricts the amount of property taxes local governments (including counties, cities, towns, villages, fire districts, and special districts) and school districts can levy. Under this legislation, the property tax levy for affected local governments and school districts cannot increase more than 2 percent, or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower, with some exceptions.