American Recovery & Reinvestment Act – Financing Programs
ARRA creates new subsidized financing options for local governments, including Recovery Zone Bonds and Build America Bonds. Following are key links for more information.
Recovery Zone Bonds & Build America Bonds:
Executive Order 102 (2009) – Use of Recovery Zone Volume Cap Allocations
IRS Notice 2009-26: Guidance to State & Local Governments on Build America & Recovery Zone Bonds
Recovery Zone Bonds – Presentation by Tina Neal to VML Annual Conference, 10-19-09
Stimulus Act of 2009 – Presentation by Christopher Kulp to VML Annual Conference, 10-19-09
ARRA Resources:
VML Federal Stimulus News & Links
“Questions to Ask About Your Community’s Municipal Bond Financing Options”
A must-read brochure prepared by the National League of Cities. It contains the 7 questions you should ask before issuing municipal debt to avoid some common pitfalls. For a free copy, select “Contact Us,” and ask for the “7 Questions” brochure.
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board Explains Statements 43 & 45 (Other Post-Employment Benefits)
Baffled by the new OPEB reporting requirements? Here’s a plain language explanation that tells you everything (and probably more) than you need to know: “A Plain-Language Summary of GASB 43 and 45″
Our 5 Favorite Virginia Government Finance Links
If you’re looking for information on finance topics and comparative information on Virginia local governments, these websites should be your first stop:
Virginia Government Finance Officers Association – highlights of the VGFOA website include comprehensive information on GASB 45 (including example accounting entries) and a host of research links on the web.
Radford University Governmental and Nonprofit Assistance Center Performance Measures – contains both financial and non-financial performance measures for Virginia Governments.
UVA Weldon Cooper Center Statistical Abstract – contains a comprehensive directory of state and national government finance resources.
Auditor of Public Accounts Comparative Report – presents comparative financial data for all Virginia counties, cities, towns with a population of 3,500 or more, and towns operating a separate school division.
USA Counties and Metros IN Profile – maintained by STATS Indiana, this site allows you to input counties and cities and conduct your own side-by-side comparison.
VACo/VML Pooled OPEB Trust Financial Statement
OPEB Comprehensive Annual Financial Report FY 2009
2009 “Name That Virginia Locality” Champions
VML/VACo Finance debuted its new local government trivia game at the fall 2009 VML and VACo annual conferences. “Name That Virginia Locality” calls for contestants to identify the City, County, or Town described in a series of ten trivia questions. Incidentally, each of the localities identified in the game – over 100 in all – has used the services of VML/VACo Finance.
With some of the greatest minds in local government vying for the distinction of “Name That Virginia Locality” Champion, here are Top 10 scorers from both conferences:
1. (Tie) Ed Daley, City of Hopewell, and Steve Owen, City of Staunton – 190 Points
3. Cathy Sutphin, Pulaski County – 170 Points
4. David Guill, Charlotte County – 150 Points
5. Joan Simpson, Prince Edward County – 130 Points
6. Lynn Proctor, City of Virginia Beach – 120 Points
7. (4-Way Tie) Claudia Arko, Fairfax County; Debby Grose, Town of Vinton; Andrew McRoberts, Richmond; and Elaine Walker, Town of Lovettsville – 110 Points
Special Congratulations to Ed Daley and Steve Owen for being our 2009 Champions!
