|
 |
||
|
Mission Viejo Foundation Update The budget revision has been moved to the Aug. 21 council meeting. It will be interesting to see the amount that will be presented to the city by the Mission Viejo Community Foundation on Aug. 5 at the groundbreaking ceremony for the expansion of the Norman P. Murray Community and Senior Center. The current condition of the foundation is difficult to assess. The financial statements for Dec. 31, 2005, were non-audited and confusing. Six months have transpired, and current statements are not available. In its recent budget revision proposal the city attempted to budget into the future with non-collected funds from the foundation. At the same time future contributions from the foundation were amortized over five years, effectively devaluing the obligation from the foundation to a stretch-out payment plan. The city would be required to make up the funds from reserves. Call it what you may, but is this not rescheduled debt? Would it not be wiser to simply place this obligation in a collection account and treat it as collected funds when received, thereby writing out any assumptions until funds are in? As a budgetary tool assumptions made from the city’s general reserve ledger accounts would be understood by the taxpayers and give more credence to the mid-year budget process. James Edward Woodin |
||