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Olivette City finance director reports near break-even year and outlines investment positions
Summary
Finance Director Darren Mann presented an unaudited 12-month financial report showing a net unfavorable variance he described as about $156,000, cited lower sales tax receipts and a recreation revenue shortfall tied to a late opening; he also reviewed the city’s CD ladder, short-term rates and an instance of temporary FDIC overexposure that was resolved.
Finance Director Darren Mann told the Olivette City Council on July 9 that the city’s unaudited full-year financial results were "really close to breaking even for the year," but the presentation included a net unfavorable variance Mann stated as roughly $156,000.
Mann attributed the variance to lower-than-expected sales tax receipts and timing impacts from staffing and program openings. He said the recreation program was about $282,000 below expectations after a delayed opening at the 5 Oaks facility. He also reported that property-tax receipts ended near expectations and that utility-tax revenue was roughly on target.
On investments, Mann reviewed the city’s CD laddering and recent yields: short rolling three-month positions yielding roughly 2.25%, a 12-month CD ladder with renewals in the approximately 5% range, and some one-year-plus CDs taken to capture higher rates. He said two highlighted positions were expected to generate additional budget revenue and described a plan to use a portion of idle cash to add about $100,000 to the budget across maturities.
Mann also disclosed that for a 13-day period the city’s balances temporarily exceeded FDIC insurance limits; staff sold one position in the secondary market at a gain and reported there was no penalty.
Why this matters: the report summarized near-term fiscal pressures (notably sales-tax softness) and outlined investment actions the city is using to preserve yield and protect reserves. Mann said the audit is scheduled in about four to five months and staff will continue to monitor revenues and maturities.
The council did not take any action on the report but asked clarifying questions about penalties for the FDIC exposure and investment maturities.
