[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6224152,"mediaKeyId","3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1","parentId",3554177,"title","City reports $1.5 million general-fund surplus in preliminary 2024 results; TID and impact-fee updates noted","audioSeconds",1010,"startMs",4373000,"endMs",5383000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1&start=4373&end=5383","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1/thumbnail_4373000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6224152/Franklin-City/Milwaukee-County/Wisconsin/City-reports-15-million-general-fund-surplus-in-preliminary-2024-results-TID-and-impact-fee-updates-noted","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6224152-c1f7565c459d3cb2a418bf08f142b753/orig.mp4?Expires=1775302010&Signature=Hk4BzWtRntBR166vWaS5XjA08vtj~7qhTz6oZ9nrUfUR70xlgCLyolRwkhYLAsd0OTCU7MrUBmFLL9Y95E45lhnc1Hxi016RhjCPvHobZxJxIvuiUntTjgKyY74RpK3PcpcALW4N0Jc5~kbgEnoDO2VQ~FCnGovOpiIzRfTQJB5TXau7zwXoo9ez1Mf1UfqyR-ERTAyyq5TVsc-H1XDg5eXWF2oAogft-kt~aB7NRI4Qonwf9Zo2bRdm~mnTHoAqFDVqkcSYvfzMi2XQ8IA7x9PNWJRm9YzS0zUz6NzD~oXiFkU8AzcFbfQCeDb72SVffr5A6WQOjHE8klrj2s7SNw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Franklin, WI","date","2025-05-28T19:20:55.717Z","article","Finance staff presented the city's preliminary 2024 financial results to the Finance Committee, reporting an estimated $1.5 million surplus in the general fund and a mix of surpluses and deficits across other funds.

The preliminary numbers show most departments operating within budget, higher-than-expected investment earnings and ambulance revenue, and several capital and TID items that will require ongoing monitoring. Staff emphasized the figures were preliminary pending final journal entries from auditors.

Why it matters

Preliminary year-end results inform budget planning and capital decisions. The committee flagged items that will affect 2025 budgeting, including debt-service needs related to 2023'24 bond issuances and the timing of major projects that delayed expected permit and impact-fee revenue.

Key figures and highlights

- General fund: an approximate $1.5 million surplus, partially driven by an unspent $2.5 million contingency.

- Debt service: a roughly $300,000 deficit tied to principal and interest on 2023 and 2024 bonds; 2025 levy increases were noted to address some debt-service needs.

- TIDs and development fund: TID activity produced roughly a $3 million surplus (subject to assessment guarantees); the development fund showed about a $2 million deficit, tied to impact-fee draws for projects including the water tower.

- Non-governmental/capital funds: roughly a $4.5 million deficit largely reflecting capital spending.

- Fund balance and revenues: total reported fund balance approximately $59 million. Ambulance revenue rose about $150,000; investment earnings were nearly $200,000 above budget.

- Solid waste: the solid-waste fund saw an overage (about $164,000) after a $20-per-unit fee increase implemented in 2024; staff said they could keep fees flat for 2025 given the fund balance.

- Room tax and tourism: staff moved to a 70/30 split (70% to room-tax/tourism fund; 30% stays in the general fund) to give Engage Franklin more-consistent quarterly revenue for obligations such as stadium naming-rights invoices.

Impact fees and select projects

- Water tower: the city anticipates a roughly $9 million water-tower project; staff noted they plan to allocate about 51% of that cost to water impact fees as invoices are received.

- Impact-fee refund: Staff processed a refund to Seasons at Franklin of roughly $130,000 after records showed the developer met prior timing conditions connected to earlier permit-rate rules.

- Elm Road and other projects: Elm Road (TID 8) and other capital projects were discussed as potential candidates for transportation-impact fee support; staff has engaged a consultant (Root Group / Rupert Milke) for a comprehensive impact-fee review budgeted for 2025.

Administration and next steps

Staff said the auditors were expected to finish journal entries and final review by June 30; the TID annual report is due to the Department of Revenue on July 1, and staff will bring a TID report to the committee at its next meeting. Committee members asked for follow-up on capital encumbrances and timing of invoices for major projects.

Ending

Committee members did not direct immediate policy changes; staff will return with finalized audit entries, the TID report for council review, and any recommended budget amendments at future meetings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Finance Committee Meeting 5-27-2025 - 6 PM","oneSentenceSummary","Finance staff presented preliminary 2024 financials showing a $1.5 million general-fund surplus, mixed results across enterprise and capital funds, changes to room-tax allocations, and updates on impact-fee collections and the water-tower project.","taxTitle","Franklin City, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin","taxId",55414,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6224157,"Finance director outlines staffing changes after deputy treasurer's retirement",525,3431000,3956000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1&start=3431&end=3956","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1/thumbnail_3431000.jpg","/articles/6224157/Franklin-City/Milwaukee-County/Wisconsin/Finance-director-outlines-staffing-changes-after-deputy-treasurers-retirement","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6224157-8974f7fdf46394fb4484080416004112/orig.mp4?Expires=1775302009&Signature=YyA9T9RwerkRxdZFJTRziHk0FYl9nYY8iiKmZzZBh-ZvRjxTi56M4RnA10P6FF6Xyp0yCNdtpNR-fwToPrlbP9yNcTMBwKFMs1iociHWcUbZy5vC3vw7qxqAC9Oc7qdJ8iF-ysKEPqGoXFXHb1QGX1N2Z2brXqAKOCdxqCint23t30Xv7sA9glhim6d1rwsMl25qcCfCErYloOcCtr-Sz4BOsBhSvrPDcYU3oP0ClbMkRt~As-bOHp3EjBFV-JQ1Acf8w5ADyDHHQKMz0s6XbHz6s-TkJC~uSNmLKFOHAWh9~s0YshB8B74klKl~q9Mee25dCMR-Se9~uC6UJemgiw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Danielle, the City of Franklin Director of Finance and Treasurer, told the Finance Committee that the city's deputy treasurer, Roseanne, has announced her retirement effective June 28 and that staff are preparing short- and medium-term options to maintain treasury operations.

The discussion focused on cross-training, segregation of duties, and a possible 12- to 18-month plan to merge management functions in finance and treasury if auditors and job analyses support the change. Danielle said she plans to have an interim assignment for an existing accountant while meeting with auditors and evaluating potential job-description changes.

Why it matters

Treasury and finance functions involve collections, disbursements and reconciliation; maintaining proper segregation of duties is a standard internal-control expectation for municipal finance. Committee members expressed concern that combining certain duties without appropriate controls could increase operational risk. Danielle said the plan is exploratory and would return to the committee with auditor feedback and a proposed structure.

Key points from staff

- Retirement timing and interim staffing: Danielle announced the deputy treasurer's retirement date as \"June 28\" and said her preference is to have an experienced accountant (Sarah) move into an interim deputy-treasurer role to learn treasury tasks ahead of tax deadlines and settlements.

- Possible position changes: Staff discussed offering Cheryl, the long-time payroll clerk who has performed accounts-payable duties in the past, full-time status and adjusting duties so reconciliation and disbursement tasks remain segregated.

- Audit and internal-control review: Danielle said she will meet with auditors (referred to as CLA) to review segregation-of-duty implications and quantify any cost savings from reorganizing two management positions into one.

- Procurement and contract oversight: The discussion noted the city lacks a centralized procurement function and recommended exploring contract and vendor-management improvements as part of a larger finance reorganization.

Next steps and timeline

Danielle said she will move Sarah to an interim role, consult with auditors, update job descriptions, and return to the committee in June with findings and a recommended path forward. No formal personnel actions were taken at the meeting.

Ending

Committee members asked that any restructuring preserve internal controls and seek auditor guidance; Danielle will report back after consulting auditors and testing the interim assignment.","With the deputy treasurer retiring June 28, finance staff proposed moving an accountant into an interim treasury role and exploring a longer-term merger of management functions to reduce redundancy while preserving segregation of duties.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6224162,"Finance committee backs revisions to City of Franklin purchasing-card policy",3281,145000,3426000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1&start=145&end=3426","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3554177-9a2729257020d4bf720516b3fd4870c1/thumbnail_145000.jpg","/articles/6224162/Franklin-City/Milwaukee-County/Wisconsin/Finance-committee-backs-revisions-to-City-of-Franklin-purchasing-card-policy","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6224162-5b29f7b7345e2a67c0f1a7b32fb0be6b/orig.mp4?Expires=1775302009&Signature=ZUF-M2MTg6cyyhOJ2gs3EUT~RTW6kwBQV5FzCZrddoIEHjImbYcxJR4f1hgbVo0G2WTGfyd3~zDMSLE1K4lmKr5gqwTeQmbx3jyn2NqT4ciOsp4q46VjrWPvCavD709fFIfiEVM6l1OS79DBkJBEhEbV~x54OO479CWjQbLfZZyVfzCZIxJCIPsSQQZ9cWR-5B88e-s~sgnHrDjtYFoThv4vWqVpSkTWV6YxNQjcwvHrpi7QMfRktVDFImgCtu7Q7RuZ~ljpY85gzpeTr0MWfgAZ9bj9EtX3ZilGwHqWRFXPqZskA-fd~6GApu7ACZmD8DCb1THMjfwKqqrXt6P~pA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a Finance Committee meeting, members voted to recommend revisions to the City of Franklin purchasing-card (P-card) policy intended to tighten controls, reduce sales-tax losses and fraud risk, and allow limited flexibility for certain online purchases.

The proposed changes, put forward by Danielle (Director of Finance and Treasurer), would increase controls on card use, require better documentation for tax-exempt purchases, create a single control point for onboarding new vendors, and add an escalation path for approvals when the mayor cannot be reached.

Committee members said the issue matters because small-dollar transactions done by card can add up to meaningful budget leakage through sales tax or weak controls, while the current check system remains costly. Danielle told the committee the city's P-card program \"has been in place since June of 2015\" and that the program currently yields a 1% annual rebate from U.S. Bank.

Key details and committee discussion

- Current limits and use: The policy sets routine card limits at $3,500 per cardholder, with a policy maximum of $10,000; the police department has one card set at $5,000. Danielle noted that, looking at 2024 and 2025 transaction data, typical users spent \"less than $2,000 per employee that really uses the card.\" The committee heard there are 21 active cardholders, mainly department heads.

- Sales tax and incidental purchases: Finance reported roughly $1,200 in sales-tax charges for 2024 and about $1,200 so far through May 2025 on card purchases. Committee members said some purchases occur at retailers that do not accept the city's tax-exempt certificate at point of sale (for example, some big-box and online sellers or out-of-state purchases), producing avoidable tax charges. Danielle said postage and check-issuing costs are increasing and that the city has already maxed its postage budget for the year.

- Controls and fraud response: The committee recommended adding a requirement that cardholders immediately contact U.S. Bank if they suspect fraudulent activity and then notify the Director of Finance in writing. Danielle asked that returns or credits be required to be posted back to the cardholder's account rather than issued as cash, and that receipts and account coding be provided monthly to accounts payable.

- Vendor onboarding and 1099/W-9 controls: To reduce risk from \"miscellaneous\" vendor entries, the committee backed a process where only the accounts-payable clerk may add new vendors and must collect a W-9 before a vendor is activated in the system.

- Enforcement and approvals: The draft changes would set clear documentation expectations, and the committee debated a specific enforcement rule. Members supported an approach that requires full compliance with receipt/documentation rules and provides that after three occurrences of missing required documentation a purchasing card would be revoked for six months. The group also agreed that where the mayor is unavailable, the mayor's written approval could be supplied by the director of administration or the director of finance/treasurer (\"or\" formulation), to avoid operational delays for small emergency purchases.

- ACH and PO controls: Several committee members urged faster adoption of an ACH policy and broader use of purchase orders for planned or repetitive purchases so the P-card is used primarily for incidental, emergency, or vendor-limited transactions.

Motion and next steps

The committee made a motion to recommend the discussed revisions to the Common Council; the motion was seconded and \"motion carries.\" Danielle said she will incorporate the committee's edits into an updated resolution and forward it to the city attorney and council for consideration.

Ending

The committee did not adopt the policy changes as ordinance at this meeting; it recommended the revisions to the Common Council and directed staff to prepare an updated resolution for council review. Finance will circulate the updated resolution after edits are incorporated.","The Finance Committee voted to recommend changes to the city's purchasing-card policy, including tighter documentation and revocation rules, a vendor onboarding change to require W-9s, and a fallback approver when the mayor is unavailable.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

City reports $1.5 million general-fund surplus in preliminary 2024 results; TID and impact-fee updates noted

Finance director outlines staffing changes after deputy treasurer's retirement

Finance committee backs revisions to City of Franklin purchasing-card policy