City of Santa Anas Purpose, Vision, Values and Goals - Essay Example

City of Santa Ana’s Purpose, Vision, Values and Goals The purpose of City Ana is “to provide quality service to enhance the safety, livability and prosperity of our community” (“The City of Santa…” 1). Keeping in mind this purpose, the management sets the direction for the city through its vision. The vision is wide; hence, goals or objectives need to be set in order to accomplish the vision. These goals should be specific, measurable, articulate, realistic, and time-bound unlike the vision which does not have a timeline. Each element of the vision is translated into measurable goals. For example, one element of the visions is “investment in children” (1). The goals set to realize this vision include ensuring a safe community and being a catalyst for the positive development of young people. It also has a vision of “appreciation of diversity” (2). This vision can be realized by formulation of a specific goal which is “recruit and retain a highly-skilled and diverse workforce” (2). From these examples, it is clear that goals flow from vision. After setting the goals, the implementation process begins. This involves translating the goals into actions or formulating strategies to ensure the goals are achieved. For the organization purpose to be achieved, every department in the organization should work towards a common goal since each department has specific actions to perform that flow from the goals. For example, to “ensure a safe community” the community development agency is required to “develop and implement programs to deter and alleviate the effects of illegal behavior” (2). The city manager’s office, on the other hand, is required to perform various actions, such as ensuring a balanced and well-planned community, project a safe image to the community, and ensure a comprehensive, city-wide approach to solving community safety issues. The personnel services are also required to ensure a safe community by ensuring a comprehensive, city-wide safety program. Thus, each goal has a set of actions that need to be carried out by each department to ensure that the goals are implemented and realized. However, for these actions to be enacted, the support in terms of funds, equipment, and manpower is needed; thus, budgetary allocation is crucial. Through the roles assigned, each department in the city is made aware of what is expected if the council is successful in its endeavor. Identification of vision, goals, and actions is vital in strengthening government’s budgeting process. From the vision achievable goals are set, and in order to achieve the goals some actions must be performed. In this case, if the actions are performed as expected, it means the vision, as well as the purpose of the organization, will be achieved. For this to happen, resources in terms of finance, materials and equipments, and manpower with required skills are needed. Where do the resources come from? The government has to provide the resources needed for successful implementation of goals, but it cannot just give out resources without a plan. It has to establish how much is needed in order to achieve each goal and allocate resources accordingly. Some goals which are more important are given more priority than others. Some actions can also enhance the implementation process by these means reducing the need for financial allocation. For example, by employing a highly skilled diverse workforce continuously, there is a possibility to ensure improved systems and high-quality services to customers and to develop the required programs. Thus, it is crucial for the government to have vision and objectives, so as to allocate resources efficiently for overall success of government services and economic growth. Q1b: Budget Overview Los Angeles The total general revenue for Los Angeles city for the year 2000-01 is $2.94 billion, which is $150 million more than that of 1999-00. The budget revenue funds will come from various items. The following are the top ten sources of general revenue. Property tax is the highest earner with $568 m as a result of upturn in real estate market and additional tax monies from Central Business District (CBD). This is 19% of the total revenue budget. Utility users’ tax comprising of electricity, natural gas, and telephone services is the second largest one, with receipts of $ 504m accounting for 17% of the total revenue budget. Licenses, permits and fees revenue is $389m accounting for 13% of total revenue. Sales tax revenue based on economic growth is $338m and represents 11.5% of total revenue. Business tax revenue is $322m accounting for 11%. It is followed by state motor vehicle license fees $ 199m, which is 6.8%. Power revenue is $ 113m accounting for 3.8%. The transient occupancy tax is $104m accounting for 3.5%. Municipal court fines amount to $96m or 3.3% of total revenue. The last top ten items is documentary transfer tax amounting to $88m or 3% of total general revenue. The five departments that received the largest share of budgeted funds are: police ($1,241.1m), public works ($ 668.9m), fire ($ 449.3m), transport ($148.0 m), and other independent departments ($ 344.4m). Mukherjee and Hanif define reserve funds as “an account set aside by individuals or businesses to meet any unexpected costs that may arise in future as well as future costs of upkeep” (44). It is mostly represented by an earmarked asset. For example, profit may be set aside for building and construction, and the reserve created this way is referred to as ‘building fund’. A revenue reserve is created by retention of profit and arises out of internal transactions while capital reserve is generated internally or externally for a specific purpose. A reserve fund is very important to any organization, be it private or public. The fund can be used to offset an unforeseen combination of events that require immediate action including non-budgeted funds. For example, in recent years most organizations and governments have been hit hard by the economic crisis and sometimes by unforeseen events, such as earthquakes and floods. Most cities in America were able to deal with this crisis by using the reserve fund. The reserve fund can also be used to respond to unexpected revenue decline or increases in spending as a result of a recession. During the recession, the economic growth is slow leading to unemployment and cuts in government expenditure. For the economy to recover, government spending needs to be stimulated, and in such cases reserve funds come in handy. They help to reduce the need for large and immediate spending cuts or tax increases. They also allow states to win time in order to consider other ways to maintain the much needed services despite the declining revenues. In this case the local governments need to have funds to offset such declines in revenues and unexpected expenditures, such as litigations. For example, the city of Los Angeles reserves funds to cover uncertainties facing the city in a number of critical areas. Firstly, deregulation of power utility market which could impact future power transfer from the Department of Water and Power, as well as the City’s utility users’ tax while the growth of Internet commerce, could negatively impact the City’s sales tax base. However, it should not be too high or too low. If it is too low, it may not be able to assist in dealing with emergencies; and if it is too high, the economy is viewed as saving taxes and not engaging in development. The reserve fund policy being pursued by Los Angeles is maintaining a reserve fund equal to a minimum of 2% of General Fund revenues. Q1c: Outcome Based Budget Process Prince William County relies on a strategic plan which contains the vision, values, and goals of the county. Out of these goals, the county in collaboration with the community defines specific outcomes that need to be achieved. These outcomes determine whether the county has been effective or not in delivering its promises – thus, it acts as measures of performance. The county has six goals, and each goal has specific outcomes which bear similar characteristics. One of the characteristics is that they define the actions needed to be done in order to achieve the goals. For instance, to achieve economic development, the county is required to add 40 targeted businesses which would translate to more jobs. To achieve education goal, students have to take various tests, and for public safety the department needs to reduce accidents, improve response time, and deal with juvenile offenders. Another characteristic is that the outcomes have specific measures upon which they will be judged. For example, the commercial tax base has to increase to 25% and if this is not achieved, then it is a failure on the part of the county. In education students have to pass exams; the county should achieve AAA bond rating and improve response for Fire Service by 5% reducing the number of accidents at critical intersections by 5% among other measures. Another feature is that some goals are achievable in short term while others will be achieved during the longer term. However, they do not have a timeline to show by when the outcomes are expected. For example, one outcome states the increase in the number of people who work in the county by at least 8% by the year 2001. This means that the outcome is expected in 2001. The employment of an outcome based budget process can lead to superior budget development in various ways. First, it is helpful in the allocation of resources since the County does not spend revenues on items with little or no use and focus on the main areas that will lead to goal accomplishment and - consequently - the vision. Outcome budgets also allow citizens to see the County’s future direction and, most importantly, what their tax dollars are really buying. In this way, they will give full support to the accomplishment of budget items. It also facilitates the budget decision making process since the desired outcomes have already shown what needs to be done. The budget is also efficient since inputs are used to produce the most possible outputs. It also ensures that the budget achieves what it sets out to achieve, consequently, increasing efficiency and effectiveness of the budget-making process. A budget based on income also ensures equitable allocation of resources since services are provided according to the community needs. The communities are surveyed on what they consider to be their priority. Therefore, when the budget is to be developed, consideration of the priorities is made. One community’s outcome is “to reduce the number of traffic accidents at critical intersections by 5%” (56). This can be achieved by installing traffic signals or the STOP signs at intersections in order to reduce speeding. However, to control the accidents, the public should be educated on the meaning and importance of these signs. Another measure is to improve the visibility of the intersection by prohibiting parking at the intersection. Pedestrian signs can also be erected so that they can pass at various intervals and avoid accidents. A budget item that is geared towards achieving this outcome can be created by making provisions for the erection of sign posts. The decision makers will decide whether to put a pedestrian sign, a traffic sign, or a STOP sign among other alternatives based on the costs and efficiency of the chosen means. Q1d: Portland Budget Monitoring Process The budget monitoring process provides periodic comparisons of actual and projected resources and also enumerates and addresses needs that arise during annual budget cycle. The process entails preparation and submission of budget monitoring reports to financial planning by bureaus which then review the reports, prepare a report, and ordinance for the council. The council also holds public hearings and adopts the budget adjustments. It is organized into three reporting periods covering the financial year, namely fall, winter, and spring. Its major elements include monitoring of expenditures, monitoring of resources, monitoring performance, and budget adjustment requests. Monitoring of expenditures involves reviewing line items and major object code expenditures in comparison with historical expenditures. This is to identify unanticipated changes in requirements or program implementation changes. On the other hand, monitoring of the resources entails appraisal of the significant income categories (“City of Portland” 7). Revenue reports and fund level information provided by bureaus are scrutinized by analysts and incorporated into the financial outlook regularly. The budget monitoring reports are prepared by bureaus. Carryovers are funds which are not used in the current year since they are carried forward to next financial year. The General Fund Carryover is carryover appropriations for one-time projects that will not be complete by the end of the current fiscal year into the next fiscal year by the fund bureaus. This is because completion of some projects takes several years and may also be affected by other factors, such as delay in purchase and supply due to procedures since all the funds allocated in current budget may not be utilized, and the projects need to be carried out to completion. For example, funds allocated by the City of Portland in the fiscal year 1997-98 are returned and incorporated in the 1998-99 budget. However, the General Fund Bureaus can request to use the funds in the 1998-99 fiscal year in advance before the year ends, so it does not have to return funds to treasury. Carryovers may be in form of grants, capital projects or encumbrance carryovers. Budgets can either be adjusted or increased. There is a huge difference between adjustment and increases. Budget adjustments are those transfers of estimated resources or appropriations within a fund that do not change the size of the fund; budget increases are those actions that change the size of a fund. These budgetary controls are carried out by three levels of budgetary authority: bureau administration, commissioner-in-charge, and the city council. Appropriations may be transferred between accounts within any major expenditure categories or between organizational units and activities by the bureau management (21). However, it cannot transfer the appropriations administratively without approval by the commissioner-in-charge. On the other hand, the council authorizes any action that increases a bureau budget. The transfer of appropriations may be made using a budget transfer journal entry. While transfer of appropriations may be done through journal entry, a budget increase requires a supplemental budget. Thus, it can be a major supplemental budget or a minor supplemental budget. However, increases to a fund of more than 10% must be through a major supplemental budget, but if it is less than 10%, a minor supplemental budget is in order. Works Cited “Budget Summary. Financial Overview 2000-2001.” City of Los Angeles. n.d. PDF file. “City of Portland. Budget monitoring process FY: 1998-99 Manual.” Office of finance and administration. 1999. PDF file. Mukherjee, A. and Hanif, M. Financial Accounting. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill, 2003. Print. “Prince William County Strategic-Based Outcome Budget Process.” N.p. n. d. PDF file. “The City of Santa Ana’s Purpose, Vision, Values & Goals.” N.p. n.d. PDF file. Read More