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Council approves Ordinance 2505 to create capital projects Fund 301 with expedited clause
Summary
The council adopted Ordinance 2505 to establish Fund 301 (general capital projects) and included an expediency clause to allow immediate use once the fund is implemented; staff said they will later transfer balances after SAO review.
The Ephrata City Council held first reading and adopted Ordinance 2505 to create a new general capital projects fund (Fund 301) and passed an expediency clause to avoid delaying the fund's creation. "What this is, is it an ordinance so that we can exactly what it says. We need to create a new fund," a staff member told councilors during the presentation.
Staff explained the change was a bookkeeping correction prompted by guidance from the State Auditor's Office: the city's existing "Capital Improvements" fund has classification issues and capital projects should be accounted for in the newly numbered fund. The staff member said the city will create Fund 301 now and then return with the specific transfers once they confirm the correct move with the State Auditor's Office. "We're basically taking the capital improvement fund... we're just moving it to the correct number," the staff member said.
Councilors moved and seconded the ordinance with the expediency clause; after discussion the council voted "Aye" and the ordinance carried. The staff member said there are no open capital projects currently charged to the old fund, and that the council's action simply creates the proper fund structure before funds are transferred.
Why it matters: Creating a correctly numbered capital projects fund aligns the city's accounting with state guidance and clears a pathway to fund capital projects such as building acquisitions or infrastructure work with proper accounting. Staff said transfers and specific project funding will return to council for formal action.
Next steps: Staff will consult with the State Auditor's Office before transferring balances into Fund 301 and will bring subsequent transfer actions back to the council for approval.
