Developing Appropriate Financial Policies in San Clemente, California

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Developing Appropriate Financial Policies in San
Clemente, California

• Pall Gudgeirsson, Assistant City Manager/City
  Treasurer
• Rising to New Heights in Finance
• CSMFO, Palm Springs, California, February 22, 2006

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Introduction

• Why San Clemente Developed a Fiscal Policy?
• City coffers virtually empty in 1992
• Reserves non-existent or unfunded
• Projected deficit balances
• Failing infrastructure
• Declining revenues
• Increasing expenditures
• Successful?

Trouble In Paradise
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Fiscal Policies Means To An End

• About the time we can make the ends meet,
  somebody moves the ends.
• Herbert Hoover

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Long-Term Financial Planning A Definition

• Identifies fiscal issues and opportunities
• Establishes fiscal policies and goals
• Examines fiscal trends
• Produces a financial forecast
• Provides for feasible solutions

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Long Term Financial Plan The Process

• Build the Foundation
• Financial Policies
• Financial Trends
• Financial Forecast
• Identify Critical Issues
• Develop the Plan
• Implement the Plan
• Monitor the Plan

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Random Thoughts on Fiscal Policies

• Tips, Traps Other Observations From the Beach
• The closest thing we ever had to a Fiscal Policy
  was a two year budget
• A San Clemente Council member

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• 10. Decide on detailed or general policies
• 9. Get ahead of the game!
• 8. Be realistic objective
• 7. Brief the press
• 6. Update annually

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• 5. Be sure that stakeholders have input into
  establishing the policy
• 4. Tie development of policies to LTFP, Budget
  CIP
• 3. Show progress in meeting policy requirements
• 2. The policy should be a living will

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• 1. Policies should be goals or challenges
• Bonus Tip Develop a policy when you get home

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• 10. Not preparing because they are too much work
• 9. Using dollar amounts in policies
• 8. Copying other entitys policies
• 7. Not informing your employee associations of
  reserve policies
• 6. Not providing enough information to
  legislators

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• 5. Getting too detailed
• 4. Allowing your policies to get out of date
• 3. Not following or delaying implementation of
  policies
• 2. Building it if you cant maintain it
• "Build it and the money will follow (Beaches,
  Parks Recreation Director)

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• Not including a policy specifying use of one time
  revenues
• Bonus Trap Developing in crisis mode

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Review Examples(See Handouts)

• City of San Clemente
• City of Sunnyvale
• City of Long Beach

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Questions Answers

• I didnt really say everything I said.
• Yogi Berra

Illustrations by Pablo Bargueno City of San
Clemente, GIS Mapping Specialist
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