CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Financial Impact Statement Guidance City Budget Office

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Purpose and Goals The PURPOSE of the financial section of the document is to communicate anticipated revenues and expenditures resulting from a piece of legislation to not only CBO, but to Council, the public (including advocates and the media) and City staff. The City Budget Office’s GOAL is that the financial section will provide accurate, comprehensive, and clear information to the various audiences

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Step #1: Determine if an item has financial impact (Accuracy) Answer these questions: –Is this related to a new financial agreement (grant, IGA, MOU, contract, contract financial amendments)? –Is this related to a plan? (i.e. master plan, comprehensive plan) –Is this a project status report? (mid-point or final) – Is this creating or changing a position? – Will this obligate the City to any future costs (i.e. Operations & Maintenance for sites/facilities when they go into service)? – Will this obligate the City to any future revenues/expenditures (i.e. grant funds and grant match requirements)? If you answer “yes” to any of the above, the Council legislation does have financial impact.

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Step #2: Do not leave FIS blank (Comprehensive) Completion. CBOrequires bureaus to complete this section regardless of whether or not it is determined a piece of legislation has financial impact. Explanation. If a bureau determines there is not a financial impact, the revenue, expenditure, and staffing sections need to briefly explain why that is the case or how that conclusion was determined. Do not write “N/A”

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Step #3: Include more information (Comprehensive and Clear) More information is better! Consider the Audience. Bureaus often submit limited information in the FIS, forgetting that the reader is often not knowledgeable about the issue(s) at hand. Expand the Narrative. Provide sufficient issue background and context for the reader to understand the actions of the legislation.

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Revenue Section New. The intent of this section is to provide information regarding bureaus’ receipt of new revenues Partnerships. The bureau should state if the legislation changes/promulgates a formal partnership with another entity (grant/IGA/IA)

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Expense Section Some questions bureaus need to answer:  What are the costs to the City as a result of the legislation/action/project?  Is it part of a larger project/effort? If so, the FIS should also include total project costs and schedule  What is the source of funding for the expense? (General Fund, grants, IA, rates)

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Common FIS Problem Areas 1.Budgeted expenditures/revenues 2.Contracts 3.Grants (Application and Acceptance) 4.Plans/Master Plans

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Budgeted Revenues and Expenditures still incur financial impacts Financial impacts are not limited just to unplanned revenues and expenditures Financial impacts exist even when new revenues are available to offset new expenditures

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Contracts Even if a bureau has built the cost of a contract into their budget, the legislation for Council to authorize the contract will still have a financial impact (expense and revenue) and that information should be reflected in the FIS section Change Order/ Contract Amendments: include both the adjustment amount and the new total contract “not to exceed” amount in the FIS

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Grant Ordinances (Application and Acceptance) Grant application ordinances should include future revenues (grant award amount) and any matching funds required by the bureau/City if the grant is awarded. This is to alert Council of financial obligations the City will be incurring before submission of the application All application and acceptance grant ordinances must be submitted to the central Grants Unit for review before formal submission to the Mayor’s Office

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Plans and Master Plans Plans and Master Plans always have Financial Impacts Council acceptance of a master plan itself may have no immediate costs, but if the plan is developed, that could incur significant future costs. Those costs need to be identified as early as possible to alert Council of the potential future financial obligations Bureaus need to state estimated O&M costs that would result from the development of the plan

CBO Fiscal Impact Guidance Additional Resources City Budget Office website has the FIPIS instructions, examples, and forms Council Clerk website has Council document manual and forms ONI website has FIPIS instructions and form and public involvement background, resources, information, and instructions Central Grants Office website has instructions, examples, and forms pertaining to grant ordinances