HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 8994INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS
NO. 8994
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council November 11, 2008
Page 1 of 1
SUBJECT: 2007 Consolidated Annual Financial Report (CAFR) Status
Overview: On September 9, 2008, the City of Fort Worth authorized the execution of a contract to Crowe
Horwath LLP, for staff augmentation services for the completion of the Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report for fiscal years 2007 and 2008. Crowe Horwath shall oversee and direct the efforts of four City
accounting staff, and provide additional government accountants, as needed, to produce the fiscal year (FY)
2007 CAFR by January 31, 2009, and the FY 2008 CAFR by July 31, 2009. In addition, the services include
the development of a repeatable and streamlined process for future CAFR preparation by the City. The
Project is segmented into the following four phases: 1) Project Planning; 2) CAFR Preparation; 3) Audit
Assistance; and 4) Knowledge Transfer.
Accomplishments: The CAFR Team has completed Phase 1 of the Project which included the delivery of
the Project Charier and the Project Plan. Phases 2 and 3 for the 2007 CAFR have begun and are in
progress. Phase 2 is scheduled to be completed by November 27th with the delivery of schedules and
account analysis required by Deloitte in contemplation of their audit procedures. Phase 3 is scheduled to be
completed by December 31st with the delivery of the draft CAFR and the draft Schedule of Federal Awards
(SEFA).
Issues and Current Status: Project issues are tracked by the CAFR Team and by City Management.
Issues are defined as matters that, if not property addressed in a timely manner, could result in the delay of
project completion. There have been 23 issues identified and 13 have been resolved or closed and 10
remain open and are being addressed. Several key issues include the following: Incomplete and inaccurate
trial balances, unrecorded prior period donated park and recreation capital assets, and an incomplete grant
award schedule. Strategies implemented to address these key issues include providing additional resources
from the following oontractors:
M &C G -16354 to Crowe Horwath for six additional resources, $150,000.00
M &C C -23156 to Jerry T. Murrish for one additional resource, $25,065.00
M &C G -16339 to Emma Walker for two additional resources, $30, 000.00
These resources will be utilized to remedy trial balance matters that were the result of undocumented
accounting entries, incomplete beginning balance adjustments and unmapped accounts, as well as obtaining
relevant information for donated assets and addressing grant schedule issues.
The CAFR Team and City Management have been monitoring identified potential issues and have plans in
place to mitigate the risk of occurrence. Potential issues are defined as concerns that have not reached a
cxiticsl level. Key potential issues include: reliance on decentralized accounting records, availability of
historical transactional documentation and timely completion of the pension fund audit. The issues
described above represent obstacles; however, the steps that have been taken will help to reduce the risk of
project delays.
6)J�A.k 11
Elmer A Ressler, P.E.
City Manager
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS