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RELEVANT LINKS: <br />Petty cash (hnprest) Funds, <br />One important step is for council to adopt a policy on internal controls, <br />Statement of Position, Office <br />of the state Auditor. <br />meaning that the council sets the rules to prevent misuse of public money. <br />Credit Card Use and Policies, <br />For example, if at all possible, the same person should not be taking in <br />Statement of Position, Office <br />of the state Auditor. <br />money and paying it out. This `segregation of duties' is part of a policy on <br />internal control and budget implementation crucial to appropriate use of <br />public funds. Policies on the use of petty cash (known as imprest funds in <br />financial jargon) and a policy on credit card use also helps protect cities <br />from loss or misuse of public funds. <br />4. Budget audits <br />Minn. stat. § 471.697, subd. <br />City councils must audit budgets, depending on the size, structure, and <br />1. <br />Minn. stat. § 471.49, subd. <br />annual revenues of the city. The state auditor publishes the audit threshold <br />10. <br />for the year gone by in early February of each year. At a minimum, a city <br />Minn. Stat. § 412.591, subd. <br />2. <br />with a population of 2,500 or less and a combined clerk/treasurer must have <br />Minn. stat. § 412.02, subd. 3. <br />an annual audit done by a certified public accountant if its annual revenue is <br />Handbook, Chapter 26. <br />greater than $199,000—for the year ending Dec. 31, 2013. A city with a <br />combined clerk/treasurer and annual revenue of less than $199,000(for the <br />year ending on Dec. 31, 2013)must have an audit done by a certified public <br />accountant once every five years, and the person doing the auditing will <br />select the year to be audited. A city with a population over 2,500 must have <br />an annual audit performed. Remember to check with the state auditor for <br />current audit thresholds in February of each calendar year. <br />5. Budget amendments <br />City budgets are not set in stone. Many cities must revise their original <br />budgets over the course of the year for a variety of reasons. Amending the <br />budget is not illegal nor is it necessarily undesirable. Typically, city councils <br />simply note the reason for amending the city budget (the city receives a <br />grant, a piece of equipment fails, etc.) and adopt the amendment in a <br />resolution. <br />Minn. Stat. § 412.731. <br />However, in Minnesota's 16 Plan B cities, resolutions reducing amounts in <br />Section X: Plan B cities. <br />the budget or authorizing transfers from unencumbered balances must pass <br />by a four-fifths vote of all the members of the council. <br />For cities over 2,500 in population, the Governmental Accounting Standards <br />City of Eden Prairie, <br />2013 Comprehensive <br />Board (GASB) requires that cities include the original budget and budget <br />Financial Report Recipient of <br />amendments in budget reports, such as the comprehensive annual financial <br />CAFR award from GFOA. <br />report (CAFR). <br />League of Minnesota Cities Handbook for Minnesota Cities 10/15/2015 <br />Municipal Budgeting Chapter 21 1 Page 9 <br />