[{"_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",6161711,"mediaKeyId","5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4","parentId",5440986,"title","MOA trust board begins RFP process, plans to hire investment operations director by fall","audioSeconds",68,"startMs",342000,"endMs",410000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4&start=342&end=410","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4/thumbnail_342000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6161711/Anchorage-Municipality/Alaska/MOA-trust-board-begins-RFP-process-plans-to-hire-investment-operations-director-by-fall","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6161711-c026f614ec061555a0b763e9b5cd5fe6/orig.mp4?Expires=1771187777&Signature=oTcap5SrDGHhiFvMpu27ASWl51rJKQNDSOPP~MfHJSNCm72XnMsWpCrcS5Q60eYGsrjdk2Y93IkpAdG9OOBYJ2uoZBTvN54Ol6M~Ll-S32I~cyK6~Uk-OnvuLH3wmBjNysqLM88HqumVxyoGea8SoKWWVCl440hynhnUBTAJ-IyS1QaTz1WqMTon8B5pKXz2HfIaYchDCJL4Hs9LwKMxXhI0nuzjCVHhTakAxAF6v5WUJVMJK4xWVdqnr34AJqK3BLPQDBhqvyOJd9EuEmDZk6c4QCrLb0JKJOIqCRJGwojZqSc~f1b0FHRedu~xGpnRmFgOSNPqzU0mKHBDX7BIMQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Municipality of Anchorage","date","2025-07-17T00:00:00Z","article","Alex Slipkow, chair of the Municipality of Anchorage Employee Trust Board, told the Budget and Finance Committee that the trust board is in the middle of an RFP process to replace its investment consultant, whose contract expires at the end of the year and cannot be renewed.

“We are in the final throes of selecting a consultant to carry on after that,” Slipkow said. He said the board provided an annual report to the assembly and that the assembly approved the trust board’s budget at a recent meeting.

Slipkow also said the board is working with the chief financial officer on a position description for a director of investment operations and is hopeful to have someone hired by September or October. “We are hopeful to have a person hired and in that position hopefully by September or October,” he said.

No formal action was taken by the committee on the trust‑board items; Slipkow’s update was informational.

The committee also heard a short update from Ian Mills, chair of the Budget Advisory Commission, who summarized quarterly budget‑to‑actuals reviews and an ongoing vice‑chair election for that commission. Those remarks were presented as standing reports earlier in the meeting.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Budget and Finance Committee-of-the-Whole Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","Alex Slipkow, chair of the employee trust board, said the board is running an RFP for a new investment consultant (current contract expires end of year) and expects to hire an approved director of investment operations by September or October.","taxTitle","Anchorage Municipality, Alaska","taxId",2653,"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},6161716,"Midyear report: general government spending at 45% through June, overtime and vacancies shape outlook",522,431000,953000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4&start=431&end=953","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4/thumbnail_431000.jpg","/articles/6161716/Anchorage-Municipality/Alaska/Midyear-report-general-government-spending-at-45-through-June-overtime-and-vacancies-shape-outlook","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6161716-19e24d19083c2198cbd0739636291dd8/orig.mp4?Expires=1771187777&Signature=Gaa9dd98Q4XbXp1UrIsqLV0idLaqnXLb2BQcGAmQFmc6poQbEQZ3N-r0btCf193cTQGXC8wyNwvDjUEYC4s5xa~DrG3HzPdEOH5QMf98j2nUW2qpYTRjJm0rHL6H22iCh5z-DP2CpFknHCVyt7zVof1qQfcv1kAQkOQ-g1gPYPT7KjSfp1DuESBzl2Y9k4yDt~t8bT3LbSumWOJdI3sgDOrAScMe~8J2ldr3gDVIc-6GfgVIaBppM6wB~UnQAFNGQkRoE5pgmaBK7FSYs0Vyfs3tWME8A83TEl1KoWyTnZaSV12QcQWbgID2WPSy8oKSYK5BYBMm-Ct-jBhimeGEgQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Ona Braus, director of the Office of Management and Budget, told the Assembly Budget and Finance Committee that general government spending through June 30 stood at 45% while the fiscal year was 51.5% complete, signaling an approximately 6‑percent underspend at midyear.

“We are 51.5% through the fiscal year… the overall total spend for general government, through June 30 is 45%,” Braus said while presenting the budget‑to‑actuals report.

Braus explained that labor and non‑labor patterns differ: labor spending is at roughly 47% while non‑labor is at about 43% of budgeted levels. She and assembly members attributed much of the underspend to vacancies in smaller departments.

Assembly member Zach Johnson asked whether the lower labor spend reflected vacancies or a missing paycheck in the data. Braus said it was a mix and noted that small departments with only a few positions show larger percentage swings when a vacancy occurs. She added that some overtime overages are concentrated in public safety and in departments with staffing shortfalls.

“The overtime breakdown is a little gnarly as it usually is,” Braus said. She pointed to police and fire overtime driven by unfilled authorized positions and said the labor spending bucket covers both regular payroll and overtime, so higher overtime can coexist with lower overall payroll spend while remaining within the same labor appropriation.

Braus also reviewed several specific funds and program areas: travel spending is $275,000 total and 50% spent; alcohol‑tax funds include a mix of immediate grants and internal operational charges; a few homelessness initiatives rolled over from 2024 and currently show little or no 2025 spending on the city’s reporting but are active in program delivery, and the ACE fund (early education and child care, funded from marijuana tax revenues) is in its first operational year and is disbursing grants.

On homelessness items, Braus told the committee that three programs—identified in materials as continuation items—were carried into 2025 because they had not spent their full 2024 allocations. “They were held over and then, continued in 2025,” she said and offered to follow up with departmental staff on status for particular pilots.

Braus and committee leaders said the assembly will provide budget priorities to administration in advance of the 120‑day memo (noted on the OMB calendar as Aug. 29) and that the mayor’s proposed budget is scheduled for delivery Oct. 1 with the formal assembly process then running through public hearings, amendments and a final vote in November.

The committee did not take formal action on the midyear report; members asked staff for continued monitoring of overtime, vacancies and the status of rollover program spending.","Office of Management and Budget staff reported general government spending of 45% through June 30 (the year was 51.5% complete), noted labor at 47% and non‑labor at 43%, and flagged overtime overages in police, fire and seasonal departments tied partly to vacancies.",{"_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},6161721,"Audit delay leaves Anchorage finances and workers' compensation filing at risk, officials say",784,1696000,2480000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4&start=1696&end=2480","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5440986-439b6256e7e1da3ad2bf3bee42781da4/thumbnail_1696000.jpg","/articles/6161721/Anchorage-Municipality/Alaska/Audit-delay-leaves-Anchorage-finances-and-workers-compensation-filing-at-risk-officials-say","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6161721-aa2010a81848861a25c9f7cef32e067d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771187777&Signature=KOF3fS44PBhc7kzukAWVf4tpTsygoD16Ri~OUrsxb9ZPTccBNoZ0DuQVA~8YqGeZvWiPs3tP5I-t28BSf-vo9l6GPytyRnxUHPmDwa8x2RBHp-U1SxFAmC7LTSvBztxaJ-Gujq~R6SLNmEYMdgDMo2bqTuKTC1xB0xQQJrTmvMO4Lr7fWcOMQ51Cy9KXD6wIYXlc7ypBwmj5D-6eC8KInF7twK3lTGJXUgvWuVjNG2jRpecxp8e-DEMHELnZzW9iv7u5b163FxOhCFL0gPDD4NJ4CpERwfiAnGOrDS6~zC6OicSfx9zOoFFEKI~cfIwvVvHHTD3TYO6nC66oglqfUQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Chief Administrative Officer Bill Fawzi told the Assembly Budget and Finance Committee that the Municipality of Anchorage has not published audited consolidated financial statements since those dated Dec. 31, 2022, and that the 2022 audit took 554 days to complete.

That delay has left the city without audited financials for later years and created immediate compliance risks, Fawzi said. “We should have more recent financials than that,” he said, adding that auditors and staff were racing to finish the next annual comprehensive financial report.

The lack of current audited statements threatens an Aug. 10 filing the municipality must make to maintain its status as a self‑insured workers’ compensation provider, Fawzi said. “We’re about to crash in to a hearing before the workers’ compensation board where they will say, where are your audited financials? We’re supposed to send our paperwork to them on August 10,” he said. If the municipality cannot supply the reports, officials warned, it may need to buy third‑party workers’ compensation insurance or face statutory penalties.

Fawzi described how the 2022 audit’s long timeline created a cascade: because the 2022 findings were not available until mid‑2024, some corrective work could not be completed before auditors began the next year’s review. He warned the committee to expect substantial audit findings for 2023 and said the complexity of recent federal grants — particularly significant FEMA, CARES Act and ARPA awards that the municipality disbursed widely to third‑party recipients — has increased the audit workload.

“2022 took 554 days,” Fawzi said. He added that grant reporting and a complicated grants schedule were a major reason the audit exchange with auditors had previously been stuck in an “infinite do loop.”

Fawzi told members that municipal staff aim to deliver the next audit draft before critical mid‑August deadlines and described three recovery scenarios: finishing in roughly 300 days (a minor recovery), returning to a roughly 272‑day timeline (comfortable recovery), or hitting a 250‑day target that would restore normal order more quickly. “That is the prize that we have our eyes on,” he said.

Committee members pressed on specific consequences. Member Baldwin Day asked about bond ratings; Fawzi said Fitch had reaffirmed the municipality’s AA rating but moved the outlook to negative, noting that continued failure to publish audited financials could eventually harm marketability of future bonds and increase borrowing costs. Member Constant asked what would happen if a negative fund balance were discovered; Fawzi said accounting changes related to SAP and the timing of debt recovery versus payments complicate fund‑balance calculations and that officials hope to provide a definitive fund‑balance figure in August.

Fawzi said staff have filled controller‑division vacancies, are automating and improving processes, and are working with auditors to finish the ACFR and the related grant schedules. He warned the committee that while staff expect to recover, the current situation is “untenable” and leaves the municipality exposed to hearings, rating‑agency scrutiny and possible insurance costs.

The committee did not take formal action; members requested updates and signaled interest in receiving the 2023 audited financials as soon as possible.","Municipal officials told the Assembly Budget and Finance Committee that the city has not published audited financials since 2022, that the 2022 audit took 554 days, and that missing 2023 audited financials risks penalties, higher insurance costs and a weakened bond outlook.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

MOA trust board begins RFP process, plans to hire investment operations director by fall

Midyear report: general government spending at 45% through June, overtime and vacancies shape outlook

Audit delay leaves Anchorage finances and workers' compensation filing at risk, officials say