FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES COMMITTEE MINUTES
February 10, 2012
Meeting held:
Jefferson County Education Center; Basil T Knight Center, Mesa 51 School District; Swink 33 School
District; Centennial BOCES, Greeley
Members Present
Marita Vogrin, Academy 20
Phil Onofrio, Eagle County Re-50
Kathleen Askelson, Jefferson County R-1
Brad Arnold, Cherry Creek 5
Brenda Johnson, Weld Re-8
Diane Raine, Mesa County Valley 51
Terry Kimber, Delta 50J
Karin Slater, Montrose County Re-1J
Mike Thomas, Fowler R4J
Karen Andrews, Dolores Re-4A
Melissa Brunner, Montezuma-Cortez Re-1J
Denise Pearson, Kiowa C-2
Dave Montoya, Poudre R1
Bill Sutter, Boulder Valley RE-2
Steven Clawson, Denver 1
Terry Buswell, Centennial BOCES
Dale Mellor, Steamboat Springs RE-2
Linda Rau, Plateau Valley 51
Cassie Walgren, Fremont Re-2
Velva Addington, Swink 33
Amy Lyons, Bayfield 10JT-R
Ex-Officio Members Present
Leanne Emm, CDE
Terry Christensen, CDE
Wendi Chapin, CDE
Eileen Johnston, James Irwin Charter
Michelle Murphy, CASB
Adam Williams, CDE
Kirk Weber, CDE
Crystal Dorsey, State Auditor’s Office
Wendy Swanhorst, CSCPA
Alternates Present
Jane Schein, St Vrain Valley RE-1J
Shae Martinez, Mapleton 1
Anthony Whiteley, St. Vrain Valley Re-1J
Donna Villamor, Littleton 6
Guests Present
Karen Cordova, Pueblo City Schools
Joanne Vergunst, Fountain-Ft. Carson 8
Willie Leslie, Clear Creek Re-1
Buddy Lambrecht, Canon City Re-1
Suzi DeYoung, Brighton 27J
Molly Janzen, Poudre R-1
Kay Bridges, Jefferson County R-1
Stacey Sondberg, Byers 32J
Suzanne Collins, Denver County 1
Marcy Studtmann, Lewis-Palmer 38
Tammy Hohn, Englewood 1
George Hansen, Adam 14
Mark Capps, Colorado Springs 11
Laurie Darnell, Sheridan 2
Mike Lee, Fort Morgan Re-3
Nikki Schmidt, Windsor 4
Sherry Shay, Thompson R-2J
Cheryl Brewster, Weld Re-1
Barb Hazelton, Mesa County Valley 51
Kurt Shugars, Telluride R-1
Mark Rydberg, Moffat County Re-1
Janell Wood, Archuleta County 50JT
Rick Howell, Pueblo City Schools
Dana Thomson, Harrison 2
David Brungardt, Valley Re-1
Chelsey Gerard, Eagle County RE50
Trisha Morris, Denver County 1
Adrienne Bradshaw, Adams-Arapahoe 28J
Lorri Dugan, Jefferson County R-1
Kay Schreiber, East Central BOCES
Terry Scharg, Gilpin Re-1
Jon Kvale, Englewood 1
Patty Buckle, Adams 12
Chuck Struck, Colorado Springs 11
Ken Wieck, Colorado Springs
Mandy Hydock, Greeley 6
Gerald Gabbard, Park R-3
Tim Unrein, Eaton Re-2
Steve Towne, Thompson R-2J
Doug Shawcroft, Mesa County Valley 51
Nancy Paregien, Mesa County Valley 5
Wendy Winfrey, Ouray R-1
Laine Gibson, Durango 9-R
Susan Doudy, Mancos Re-6
Don Trujillo, Pueblo 70
Steve Plutt, Dazzio & Plutt
Shawn Sonnkalb, Clifton Larson Allen
Dottie Burnett, Santa Fe Trails BOCES
Justin Petrone, Clifton Larson Allen
Marc DeVries, Clifton Larson Allen
Members and Alternates Absent
Carole Herman, Liberty J-4
Paula Sublett, San Juan BOCES
Rhonda Bohlander, Crowley County Re-1J Kim Krause, Akron R-1
MINUTES
FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES COMMITTEE
February 10, 2012
I.
Call to Order and Introductions
Leanne Emm called the meeting to order at 9:30 am. Those in attendance were asked to introduce
themselves and their district. .
II.
Presentation of Agenda
Leanne presented the agenda and added that since the meeting was going to be short, anyone
interested in remaining after to participate in a roundtable discussion of any item CDE staff would be
available.
III.
Approval of Minutes
Kathleen Askelson made a motion to approve the minutes from the September 23, 2011 meeting. Phil
Onofrio 2nd the motion. Motion carried.
IV.
Legislative Updates
Leanne gave a brief overview of what was discussed at CASE last week. Currently the School
Finance supplemental bill passed out of the House on third reading and is headed to the Senate. She
full expects the supplemental appropriation to pass. The bill increases total program by $19.8M to
account for the increase growth across the state. Per pupil amounts may change minimally from what
was originally estimated in June but not significantly and the amount for the negative factor will not
change. If the supplemental were to not be approved, in effect that acts as a rescission because total
program would not change and it would have to cover student growth. The supplemental bill will also
set the starting point for FY12-13, however these numbers will change. The Joint Budget Committee
will do figure setting March 1 then after that the School Finance Act will be introduced. Changes that
may affect the Governor’s budget proposal are the CPI that is due out in mid to late February, the cost
of living study, revisions to pupil count, March economic forecast, etc.
Leanne addressed questions that have been asked at recent gatherings regarding level funding and
just what does it mean. This can mean two different things depending if it is coming from the district or
state level. She advised districts to be cautious when the topic of level funding for K-12 education is
discussed.
Leanne recognized the districts that have taken on the challenge of reviewing fiscal notes as
authorized in HB11-1277.
Leanne turned the meeting over to Wendi Chapin who reported that to date there have been 35 bills
reviewed for fiscal notes. She gave highlights on the following bills:
Concurrent enrollment HB12-1043
 May be a cost for districts.
 Enrollment status may have to be tracked to reflect credits, attendance, etc.
 There is the potential to prolong student graduation beyond 12th grade.
 Potential increased financial burden on LEA if they do not record student correctly.
 2-8-12 House committee on education referred amended to House Committee of the whole
Trans Fats in Foods SB12-068
 CDE Nutrition office would need to train nutrition units on regulation
 Districts will need to amend their menus to reflect regulation
 Introduced to Senate on 1/13/12
Funding for Dropout Recovery Programs HB12-1146
 As proposed this dropout recovery program does not adhere to the current concurrent
enrollment statutes.

Conflict in definition between full-time and part-time enrolled student. (Proposed says 7 credit
hours is full time; current legislation is more.
 1/20/12 Assigned to Education
CPR Education in Schools SB12-098
 Proposed wording states that CPR would be a requirement of graduation on CPR and AED.
 CDE compliance with the American Heart Association.
 CDE would need to monitor and track 12th graders through the training process.
 Definition ambiguity
 LEA liability exposure potential.
 1-25-12 Assigned to Education
Tracking Utility Data on CCA Projects HB12-1166
 Part of a “green” and energy efficient movement by members of legislation.
 Need to watch and see how far bill proceeds.
 1-20-12 Assigned to Transportation
BEST program and Charter School Institute SB12-121
 Revises the BEST Charter School calculation in the grant cycle.
 Rest of bill has challenging wording in regards to charter schools, LEAs and grants.
 CDE is working on verbiage resolution
 1/31/12 Introduced to Senate – Assigned to Education
Consolidated Communication System Authority HB12-1224
 Establishes consistent communication with emergency services.
 District systems from bus to hand held radio systems will have to be updated.
 2/6/12 Introduced in House – Assigned to Transportation
Energy Efficient Public Schools HB12-1235
 Part of the “green” and energy efficient movement by members of legislation.
 Need to watch and see how far bill proceeds.
 Amends construction criteria and could have financial impact on districts. (Renovations to a
roof may mean the whole building would have to be upgraded on energy efficiency.)
 2/6/12 Introduced to House – Assigned to State, Veterans & Military Affairs
Leanne spoke to the following bills:
No Student Count day on holidays HB12-1090
 Allow for changes to the pupil enrollment date to accommodate religious holidays.
Concerning Budget Cuts to provide more funding to public schools HB12-1109
 Would require all state departments to cut budgets to the amount of CPI growth to fund
education.
Collective Bargaining HB12-1118
 Requires open meetings between members of a board of education with representatives of
employees at which the terms of a collective bargaining agreement are negotiated.
 Prior notice of the meeting is required by law.
 When a local board enters into the terms of a written collective bargaining agreement, the
local board shall make available for public inspection any documents presented between the
board and representatives of employees.
BOCES On-line authorization HB12-1212
 Under current law, a BOCES may authorize either a single-district or a multi-district on-line
educational program. The bill permits a BOCES to authorize only a multi-district program.
Statutory changes to K-12 Education HB12-1240
 Clean-up bill that contains several statutory changes proposed by the department of
education.
Denise Pearson asked if the Department was watching SB12-051 that deals with transparency in
school district contracts. Leanne said yes and that there had been amendments to the bill allowing for
posting online the contact person at the district in lieu of posting actual contracts.
V.
GASB Proposal – Financial Projections for Assessing Economic Condition of Government
Kirk Weber spoke to GASB’s preliminary views on major issues related to economic condition
reporting of financial projections. They would like to require entities to start providing five year
projections on a cash inflow/cash outflow basis as required supplemental information. Comments
regarding this issue may be submitted to GASB by March 16, 2012. Karin Slater said that CGFOA is
having a training session on this issue on Friday, February 24th at Rubin Brown, LLP in downtown
Denver. The cost is $15 for members and $25 for non-members to attend. Any one interest in
attending can sign up at the CGFOA website CGFOA Calendar of Events . They will have several
presenters then a roundtable discussion to decide how to respond to GASB. Marita Vogrin stated that
the Pike Peak area business officials are planning on responding and asked if there was any thought
to responding through FPP. After further discussion it was decided to have a meeting at CDE after the
CGFOA meeting to draft a response from FPP. Marita Vogrin, Steven Clawson, Adrienne Bradshaw
and Karin Slater volunteered to help draft a response.
VI.
Financial Policies and Procedures
a. Handbook Revisions Review
Kirk Weber reviewed the changes and updates that were made to the handbook. Steven Clawson
asked for clarification on the Tabor 3% reserve presentation in the Governmental Fund or
Government-wide statements if the district had pledged buildings or submitted a letter of credit.
After discussion Kirk said he would review the intent of the statute. This will be brought back to the
committee and the handbook will be presented for approval at that time.
b. FPP Guideline Amendment Proposal
Phil Onofrio presented a proposal that the FPP guidelines be amended to expand the committee
membership to include any entity that submits financial ADE data have one voting membership on
the committee. After discussion it was the consensus of the committee to form a sub-committee to
propose recommended changes to the guidelines in advance of the May meeting. Subcommittees members will be Phil Onofrio, Terry Buswell, Dave Montoya, Laine Gibson, Denise
Pearson, Diane Raine and possibly someone from the southeast area. Wendi Chapin will
coordinate the sub-committee.
VII. Special Education Fiscal Advisory Committee Membership
The Exceptional Student Services Unit at CDE has requested a replacement for Karen Strakbein, who
is retiring from Summit School District, on the Special Education Fiscal Advisory Committee (SEFAC).
The member must be a business official from a small rural administrative unit. Mark Rydberg from
Moffat County RE-1 volunteered to serve on the committee.
VIII. Other Topics of Interest
a. CGFOA’s Financial Officer of the Year
Crystal Dorsey announced that Karin Slater received CGFOA’s Finance Officer of the Year award
for 2011 at the annual conference. This award is made to a financial officer who has made
outstanding contributions which further the goals of the CGFOA. Crystal noted that Karin has
been described as a true leader in CGFOA in that she inspires, encourages, initiates, and
participates with enthusiasm. She also noted that this award is not often presented to a school
district business official.
b. Recognition of Adam Williams
Phil Onofrio presented a plaque to Adam Williams on behalf of the FPP committee recognizing him
as an honorary CPA.
c. Audit & ADE Submission Update
Adam Williams gave an update on the current status of the financial ADE and audit submissions.
There are currently thirteen districts still submitting ADE data. Leanne advised districts that the
February 29th deadline for submission is fast approaching. Any district that does not meet the
deadline will be in jeopardy of having their property tax withheld.
d. USDE: Comparability of State & Local Expenditures Among Schools Within Districts: A
Report From the Study of School-Level Expenditures
Kirk Weber announced that the USDE has released the report associated with the school-level
expenditure reporting that was required with stimulus funding.
There being no further business to come before the Committee, the meeting was adjourned.