State Auditor's E-Update - 7/30/2021
1. Message from Auditor Blaha
2. Released: Pension Newsletter
3. Released: 2020 Local Government Lobbying Services Report
4. We’re Hiring! Join our OSA Team
5. Deadlines: TIF Annual Reporting Form and TIF Annual Disclosure
6. Avoiding Pitfall: Approval of Claims
1. Message from Auditor Blaha
Happy Sunisa Lee Day! This is an exciting day for the City of Saint Paul and the State of Minnesota. As such, I would like to share the official proclamation from Governor Walz:
"WHEREAS: Team USA’s Sunisa (Suni) Lee won Olympic gold on Thursday, July 29, 2021, in the Tokyo Olympics Gymnastics individual all-around competition; and
WHEREAS: 18-year-old Lee from Saint Paul, Minnesota, is the first Hmong-American to compete in the Olympics; and
WHEREAS: Lee and her teammates have trained through adversity, including her father’s injury, the COVID-19 pandemic, and competing at venues without a live audience or fans cheering them on; and
WHEREAS: Lee has made our state and country proud by etching her name among the legendary USA Olympians that have won gold at the Summer Games."
Congratulations to Suni, her teammates, and all her family and friends back home. You have made us all so proud!
2. Released: Pension Newsletter
The July Pension Newsletter has been released. The Newsletter provides information about the 2021 Schedule Form due to municipalities by August 1, used to determine municipal contribution requirements payable to the relief association during 2022. The Newsletter also provides information about maximum allowable benefit levels, municipal ratification requirements when a benefit level is changed, and private member data contained on some relief association reporting forms.
The complete Newsletter can be accessed here.
3. Released: 2020 Local Government Lobbying Services Report
This week State Auditor Julie Blaha released the 2020 Local Government Lobbying Services Report. The Report shows the expenditures by local governments and their associations for lobbyists and lobbying.
The link to the press release may be found here.
The Report and its underlying data are available on the OSA website here.
4. We’re Hiring! Join our OSA Team
The Office of the State Auditor (OSA) is hiring! We have local government auditor positions currently open in Moorhead, Mankato, and Marshall. The positions are posted on the Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) website.
Please use the following job numbers to search for the open positions: Moorhead (47435), Mankato (47446), and Marshall (47637).
5. Deadlines: TIF Annual Reporting Form and TIF Annual Disclosure
TIF Annual Reporting Forms are due on or before Monday, August 2.
An annual statement containing specific information about each TIF district must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality no later than August 15. The information to be published is also reported on the "ADS" Tab of the TIF Annual Reporting Form. Please do not forget to publish the disclosure in a timely manner.
If you have any questions, please contact us at TIF@osa.state.mn.us.
6. Avoiding Pitfall: Approval of Claims
In many public entities, the governing body must approve the payment of all claims.
Before the governing body’s meeting where the claims will be considered, members should fully review each claim for appropriateness and accuracy. If necessary, the supporting documentation for the claim should be examined.
This Avoiding Pitfall is available on our website here.