Peralta Community College District
Sound Fiscal Management
Self-Assessment Checklist
1. Deficit Spending - Is this area acceptable?
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No
Is the district spending within their revenue budget in the current year? YES, the
Board of Trustees (BOT) adopted a balanced budget (Revenues equal or
exceed expenditures).
Has the district controlled deficit spending over multiple years? Similar to other
districts within the State, over the course of the last 4 fiscal years the District
has deficit spent by approximately $12 million due to state fiscal challenges.
As previously mentioned, for fiscal year 2010-11 the BOT has adopted a
balanced budget.
Is deficit spending addressed by fund balance, ongoing revenue increases, or
expenditure reductions? Deficit spending has been absorbed by the use of
Unrestricted Fund Balance.
Are district revenue estimates based upon past history? No, revenue estimates
are based upon projected FTES levels generated by the District and based
upon grant contracts.
Does the district automatically build in growth revenue estimates? No, given the
uncertainty at the State level, growth revenue has not been built within the
District’s budget.
2. Fund Balance – Is this area acceptable?
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Yes
Yes
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No
Is the district’s fund balance stable or consistently increasing? As previously
mentioned, the District has used its Unrestricted Fund Balance to absorb
deficit spending over the subsequent 4 years. The current level of the Fund
Balance is at 5%. It is projected to increase slightly for fiscal year 2011-12.
Is the fund balance increasing due to on-going revenue increases and/or
expenditure reductions? The Fund Balance has not been increasing.
3. Enrollment - Is this area acceptable? Yes
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No
Has the district’s enrollment been increasing or stable for multiple years? Yes.
Are the district’s enrollment projections updated at least semiannually? Yes,
enrollment projections are continuously updated and these updates are
shared with all constituent groups.
Are staffing adjustments consistent with the enrollment trends? Yes, specifically
related to adjunct faculty.
Does the district analyze enrollment and full time equivalent students (FTES) data?
Yes, enrollment projections are updated and analyzed.
Does the district track historical data to establish future trends between P-1 and
annual for projection purposes? Yes, horizontal trend analysis is performed as
projections are updated.
Has the district avoided stabilization funding? Yes.
4. Unrestricted General Fund Balance – Is this area acceptable?
Yes
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No
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Is the district’s unrestricted general fund balance consistently maintained at or
above the recommended minimum prudent level (5% of the total unrestricted
general fund expenditures)? Yes.
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Is the district’s unrestricted fund balance maintained throughout the year? Yes,
Fund Balance is monitored continuously throughout the year.
5. Cash Flow Borrowing - Is this area acceptable?
Yes
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No
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Can the district manage its cash flow without interfund borrowing? The District has
relied upon interfund borrowing to meet operational needs. In the future, the
District will also look into the use of TRANS for cash flow needs given
additional deferrals by the State.
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Is the district repaying TRANS and/or borrowed funds within the required statutory
period? The District intends to issue TRANS for the fiscal year 2011-12. The
District will repay the borrowed funds within the timelines prescribed within
the TRANS agreement.
6. Bargaining Agreements - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Has the district settled bargaining agreements within new revenue sources during
the past three years? Yes.
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Did the district conduct a pre-settlement analysis identifying an ongoing revenue
source to support the agreement? Yes.
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Did the district correctly identify the related costs? Yes.
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Did the district address budget reductions necessary to sustain the total
compensation increase? Yes.
7. Unrestricted General Fund Staffing - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Is the district ensuring it is not using one-time funds to pay for permanent staff or
other ongoing expenses? The District has used one-time funds for ongoing
operational expenses due to statewide budget reductions.
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Is the percentage of district general fund budget allocated to salaries and benefits
at or less than the statewide average (i.e. the statewide average for 2003-04 is
85%)? Budget salaries and benefits for Unrestricted General Fund are
approximately 81%. That being said, an additional 5.8% is budgeted for
OPEB bond debt service payments.
8. Internal Controls - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Does the district have adequate internal controls to insure the integrity of the
general ledger? Various internal controls have been identified by our external
audits as needing improvement. Corrective action is currently taken to
strengthen existing controls in place and to establish controls in areas where
controls did not exist.
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Does the district have adequate internal controls to safeguard the district’s assets?
Yes.
9. Management Information Systems - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Is the district data accurate and timely?
No. Procedures are being developed to ensure accurate and timely
posting/submission of District Data.
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Are the county and state reports filed in a timely manner?
More recently, yes. Since summer 2010, reports have been submitted timely
to cognizant agencies.
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Are key fiscal reports readily available and understandable?
Yes, fiscal reports are sent out monthly to each campus’ administration,
reviewed monthly by the Planning and Budget Council (shared governance
committee), and presented to the Board of Trustees no less than quarterly.
10. Position Control – Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Is position control integrated with payroll?
No. This functionality within PeopleSoft is currently being implemented.
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Does the district control unauthorized hiring?
Yes.
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Does the district have controls over part-time academic staff hiring?
Yes through the use of personnel action forms that are initiated at the
campus level and forwarded to the District (HR and Finance) for review and
approval.
11. Budget Monitoring - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Is there sufficient consideration to the budget, related to long-term bargaining
agreements?
Yes.
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Are budget revisions completed in a timely manner?
Yes.
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Does the district openly discuss the impact of budget revisions at the board level?
Yes.
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Are budget revisions made or confirmed by the board in a timely manner after the
collective bargaining agreements are ratified?
Yes. More recently, the Board of Trustees approved all budget transfers and
adjustments.
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Has the district’s long-term debt decreased from the prior fiscal year?
Yes.
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Has the district identified the repayment sources for the long-term debt?
Yes.
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Does the district compile annualized revenue and expenditure projections
throughout the year?
Yes, on a monthly basis.
12. Retiree Health Benefits - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Has the district completed an actuarial calculation to determine the unfunded
liability?
Yes. Actuarial studies have been conducted for the District’s liability
programs as well as for OPEB.
Does the district have a plan for addressing the retiree benefits liabilities?
Yes. The District has restructured its OPEB program and identified a long
term solution to fully fund the UAAL of approximately $121 million.
13. Leadership/Stability - Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Has the district experienced recent turnover in its management team (including the
Chief Executive Officer, Chief Business Officer, and Board of Trustees)?
Yes. The current Chancellor (CEO) has been in office for 11 months and his
contract expires 6/30/2012. The current CBO has been in place for 10
months.
14. District Liability – Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Has the district performed the proper legal analysis regarding potential lawsuits that
may require the district to maintain increased reserve levels? Yes, as part of the
fiscal year end closing process.
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Has the district set up contingent liabilities for anticipated settlements, legal fees,
etc? Yes, as part of the fiscal year end closing process.
15. Reporting – Is this area acceptable? Yes / No
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Has the district filed the annual audit report with the System Office on a timely
basis?
Yes. The annual report for the fiscal year ending 6/30/2010 was filed with the
System Office in a timely fashion, while previous years were not.
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Has the district taken appropriate actions to address material findings cited in their
annual audit report?
Yes. The District has taken action to address all prior year audit findings.
See the District’s updated Corrective Action Matrix (CAM).
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Has the district met the requirements of the 50 percent law?
Yes. As reported in the fiscal year 2009-10 annual 311 report the District’s
50% law calculation was approximately 51%.
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Have the Quarterly Financial Status Reports (CCFS-311Q), Annual Financial and
Budget Reports (CCFS-311), and Apportionment Attendance Reports (CCFS-320)
been submitted to the System Office on or before the stated deadlines?
Since summer 2010, all 311Qs, 311As, and 320 reports were filed in a timely
fashion.