District 196 receives award
for Excellence in Financial
Reporting
School District 196
For eleven consecutive
fiscal years (2001-02
through 2011-12),
District 196
was selected
to receive the
Certificate of
Excellence in Financial
Reporting from the
Association of School
Business Officials (ASBO)
International for excellence in
the preparation and issuance of the district’s
Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.
The District has submitted its 2009-10
Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for
consideration.
School Board
The Certificate of Excellence is the highest
recognition of school district financial
operations offered by ASBO, a professional
organization with more than 6,000 members.
The nationally recognized Certificate of
Excellence program reviews and critiques district
accounting practices as represented in the
Annual Financial Report and recognizes school
districts that adhere to sound principles and
reporting procedures. Fewer than 5 percent of
the school districts in Minnesota received the
Certificate of Excellence award last year.
The Annual Financial Report for fiscal year 2012
is available in the Finance Department section of
the District 196 web site at www.district196.org.
District 196 is the fourth largest school district in
the state of Minnesota. It serves approximately
27,500 students and employs over 3,600 staff
members at 36 sites.
The School Board is the governing body of
the school district, responsible for developing
policy to ensure the proper care, management
and control of district affairs, and supporting
the mission of educating our students to reach
their full potential. The Board usually meets on
the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month at 6 p.m.
at Dakota Ridge School, with the exception of
holidays. Meeting dates, agendas and minutes
are available on the district website.
INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT 196
Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public Schools
UNDERSTANDING
THE Budget cycle
A Continuous
Five-Step Process
Budget Advisory Council (BAC)
The Independent School District 196 BAC was
formed to provide feedback to the School Board
on matters of budget. The BAC consists of community members with professional budgetary experience as well as representatives from district
administration, building administration, teachers
and support staff. The group meets regularly at
the District Office.
For more information…
• Review the District 196 Finance website at
www.district196.org/finance/index.cfm
• Read Financing Education in Minnesota
located at www.house.leg.state.mn.us/fiscal/
fahome.htm
• Attend a Budget Advisory Council meeting. Meeting times and minutes are available
on the District 196 website or by calling the
Finance Department at 651.423.7713.
• Contact the Finance Department at
651.423.7713 or email Jeff Solomon, Director
of Finance and Operations at jeff.solomon@
district196.org
Supt/BudgetAdvisoryCouncil/Brochure/13BudgetAdvisoryBrochure.indd/District 196 Graphics/6-13
Prepared by the District 196
Budget Advisory Council
Independent School District 196
In a continuing service by the Budget Advisory Council (BAC), this
brochure provides greater detail and understanding of the District 196
budget process and timelines.
3
The complete budget cycle can be viewed as a continuous five-step process, including the property tax levy,
preliminary budget, final budget, spring budget adjustments, and the year-end annual financial report and
audit. Each of these steps requires School Board approval and is open for public inspection and comments.
Since this process spans multiple school and calendar years, the district can be in multiple phases of the
process at any given time. The process used by the school district is mandated by state law.
Below are general descriptions on the process with a specific example for the 2013-14 school year detailed in
the timeline.
1
2
Property Tax Levy
The process begins with submission of estimated
property tax levy information to the Minnesota
Department of Education (MDE) by mid-July.
The MDE sets the maximum levy amount for
each school district based on current legislation
and formulas. This property tax levy information
is reviewed, updated and certified by the School
Board prior to the end of the calendar year. The
collection of the property tax levy occurs during
the calendar year and is intended to be utilized
during the upcoming school year. For example,
the tax levy for 2013 that is certified in December 2012 is collected in May and October 2013
and would be used for the 2013-14 school year.
Submit levy
information to
MDE for taxes
payable during
2013 used for
school year
2013-14
4
Budget Adjustments
The fourth step in the process is a spring budget adjustment based on revised information;
spring adjustments are primarily focused on
federal and grant programs. Because of federal
program requirements, the district makes these
adjustments to ensure that the revised budget is
closely aligned with actual expenditures for the
year. This adjustment allows for accurate funding for programs and provides the most accurate
basis for developing the preliminary budget for
the next fiscal year.
Preliminary Budget
During the middle of each school year, the
district moves to the second step in the process and begins development of the preliminary
budget for the next school year. This process
includes the completion of long-range enrollment projections, updating the five-year budget
forecast, development of staffing guidelines
and determination of revenue and expenditure assumptions to be included in the budget.
This process also includes development of the
capital expenditure budget for the next school
year during the spring of the current fiscal year.
The School Board must approve a budget by the
beginning of the fiscal year (July 1) in which it will
be used. This provides the district with spending
authority as the initial estimates are revised and
the actual enrollment is determined.
5
Annual Financial Report & Audit
The fifth and final step in the process is closing
the books and preparing the financial statements. This occurs during late summer each
year. During this period, the district undergoes
an independent audit as required by state law.
The auditors render an opinion on the district’s
financial statements and accounting practices.
The School Board typically reviews the audited
financial report in late October.
Annual Budget Timeline
School Board
adopts
preliminary levy
Truth-in
taxation
notices mailed
to property
taxpayers by
Dakota County
School Board
School Board holds certifies
public hearing
final 2013
on tax levy
tax levy
5-year
enrollment
projections
updated
Budget
assumptions
determined
by School Board
5-year budget
forecast
updated
Staffing
guidelines
approved
by School Board
Capital
expenditure
budget
approved
by School Board
preliminary
budget for
2013-14
approved
by School Board
Step 2
Step 1
JulY 2012
Final Budget
The third step in the budgeting process happens during the fall each year. The Finance
Department updates the preliminary budget
with revised estimates and staffing allocations,
and develops the final budget. The revisions are
based on any changes in laws that affect education finance and are based on the actual enrollment on October 1 of the current year.
SEpTEMBER 2012
nOVEMBER 2012
DECEMBER 2012
DECEMBER 2012
DECEMBER 2012
Final budget
for 2013-14
approved
by School Board
Step 3
DECEMBER 2012
JAnuARY 2013
FEBRuARY 2013
ApRIl 2013
JunE 2013
DECEMBER 2013
educating our students to reach their full potential
Spring budget
adjustment
for 2013-14
budget approved
by School Board
Step 4
MAY 2014
Close financial
books for
2013-14
Independent
auditors perform
audit and render
opinion on
financial
statements
School Board
approves
audited Annual
Financial Report
Step 5
JunE 2014
AuguST 2014
OCTOBER 2014