Ferguson Township Budget Key Personnel Board of Supervisors Steve Miller, Chair Peter Buckland, Vice Chair Laura Dininni Rita Graef Janet Whitaker Department Managers Mark A. Kunkle, Township Manager David G. Pribulka, Assistant Township Manager David J. Modricker, Director of Public Works Eric R. Endresen, Director of Finance Diane M. Conrad, Chief of Police Raymond J. Stolinas, AICP, Director of Planning & Zoning December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 2 Operating Budget FY2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS Budget Messages 8 Provides some highlights of the budget from the perspective of the Township Manager and the Finance Director GFOA Budget Award 16 This is the budget award document from the GFOA Community Profile 17 Provides background and historical information of the township Form of Government 18 Describes the legal structure of the township government Township Map 19 The official map identifies the various zoning districts in the township Voting Wards 20 The voting wards provides a map of the current electoral districts of the township Board of Supervisors 21 The board of supervisors identifies the current officials of the five- member board Mission, Vision & Values 22 The mission, vision & values are the guiding statements for the township officials and staff Township Organizational Chart 24 The organizational chart depicts the management chain of command within the township Personnel Schedule 25 The personnel schedule provides readers with the general level of township staffing by department Basis of Budgeting 27 The basis of budgeting describes the accounting basis for the budget figures and the different methods available Budget Process & Overview 28 The budget overview details the process to produce, approve and revise the budget Description of Township Funds 30 This section describes and defines the various funds of the township December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 3 Operating Budget FY2017 Financial Summary 31 This section provides information on fund balances, revenues, expenditures and changes in fund balances Summary Fund Balances, Revenue & Expenditures 32 This is a summary by type and fund of the previous year, the current year and the budget year Revenue & Expenditures by Fund and Department 34 This is a detail of the revenues and expenditures accounts by fund and department General Fund (01) 72 The general fund is the main operating fund of the township. the following sections are departments within the fund Revenues 73 the revenue section provides detailed information related to all general fund revenues General Government 93 the general government department relates the board of supervisors expenses. Executive Administration 96 the administration department relates to the township manager office expenses and supporting staff Finance & Tax 102 the finance and tax departments relates to the finance office expenses Legal 112 This relates to the township legal expenditures. CRCOG Administration 113 This relates to the township’s share of the Centre Region Council of Governments regional administration costs. Information Technology 115 the IT department relates to computer support services and hardware replacements Engineering 119 the engineering department relates to the public works directors office expenses Buildings & Grounds 127 the Buildings & Grounds department relates to maintenance of township facilities December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 4 Operating Budget FY2017 Public Safety 131 the public safety department relates to police, EMS and other safety expenses Fire 147 this relates to the township’s share of regional fire services. Planning & Zoning 149 the P&Z department relates to the planning office expenses EMS/Health 158 this relates to the township’s share of regional emergency & health services. Public Works 160 the PW department relates to recycling, road maintenance and equipment repair Transit System 173 This relates to the townships share of the regional CATA (Centre Region Transportation Authority bus service Parks & Recreation 174 the P&R department relates to park and street tree maintenance and recreation expenses Schlow Public Library 181 this relates to the township’s share of the Schlow regional public library. Other Services 182 this relates to the various services such as seniors, natural resource conservation and economic development. Taxes, Insurance, Benefits and Other 185 these sections relate to personnel benefits, risk management and other expenses. Interfund Transfers Out 192 this relates to the general fund transfers out supporting other funds Special Revenue Funds This section represents those funds of the township that receive funding from sources other than general tax revenue. The street light fund and the hydrant fund revenue is derived from special assessments on residents receiving related services. The liquid fuels fund receives funding from the state as part of a surcharge on fuels. Street Light Fund (02) 195 the SL fund is a dedicated fund to assess costs to those who benefit directly from the lights December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 5 Operating Budget FY2017 Hydrant Fund (03) 197 the Hydrant fund is a dedicated fund to assess costs to those who benefit directly from the hydrants Liquid Fuels Fund (35) 200 the LF fund is required by the state to account for state liquid fuels funding for the maintenance of roads and bridges General Obligation Fund (16) 204 the GOA fund is used to manage the long term debt service needs of the township Capital Projects Funds This section details the funds reserved for use in capital projects. Such projects include road rebuilding or major repairs, recreational projects, park improvements and various beautification projects. Piney Ridge Fund (18) 208 the PR fund was formed to account for contributions restricted for roadwork in the piney ridge subdivision Ag Preservation Fund (19) 210 the AP fund is restricted for agricultural easement purchases to protect ag land in the township Capital Reserve Fund (30) 212 the CR fund is restricted for the purchase of capital equipment Capital Improvement Plan 220 The Capital Improvement plan is not an official township budget. Rather, it is a five-year plan of the forecasted capital needs of the township. This includes estimates for operational costs as well in order to better predict the financial sustainability of the township over the mid-term. Regional Capital Recreation Projects Fund (31) 298 the RCRP fund is dedicated for the capital costs of regional parks Transportation Improvement Fund (32) 301 the TIF fund is restricted for capital road projects through a dedicated tax Pine Grove Mills Streetlight Fund (33) 307 the Pine Grove Mills streetlight fund is restricted for the installation of street lights in the village December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 6 Operating Budget FY2017 Park Improvement Fund (34) 309 the Park Improvement fund is restricted for use on specific park projects Fiduciary Funds The Fiduciary Funds represent the non-governmental accounts of the township. these funds are separate from the township acitvities and are entrusted to the township to administer. These include the pension funds and the Tudek Memorial Trust Fund. Police Pension Trust Fund (60) 311 the Police Pension Trust fund is a trust fund for the police officers pension plan Non-Uniform Trust Fund (65) 316 the Non-Uniform Pension Trust fund is a trust fund for the benefit of the non-uniform pension plan Tom Tudek Memorial Trust Fund (93) 320 the Tom Tudek Memorial Trust is a trust fund for the benefit of the Tudek Trust park Glossary 324 The Glossary provides definitions of key terms for the report to make reading and understanding this document easier. Financial Policies 331 The Financial Policies section provides information for the reader to better understand the financial guidelines that the township follows during the operation of the township. December 5, 2016 2017 Operating Budget 7 Operating Budget FY2017 Manager’s Budget Message November 7, 2016 To the Board of Supervisors and Township Residents, Introduction On behalf of the township staff I am pleased to present the 2017 Township Budget to the Board of Supervisors and the township residents. The budget is one of the important policy documents that defines the direction the township is heading and combined with the Strategic Plan goals and objectives and the Five Year Capital Improvement Plan establishes a firm base for policy decisions. As a guiding document the budget references the Strategic Plan goals throughout and ties these goals to funding of projects, personnel and services. Further, the annual budget is consistent with the approved Five Year Capital Improvement Plan by incorporating and providing funding for those capital expenditures previously approved for 2017 in the Capital Improvement Plan. At the national level the economy has been flat with GDP in the 1% range. The Consumer Price Index as of September year to date is 1.5% and Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 98.6 (1985=100), down from 103.5 in September. The Present Situation Index decreased from 127.9 to 120.6, while the Expectations Index declined from 87.2 last month to 83.9. As a presidential election year history has shown that the economy has seen positive improvement in the first year of the presidency. The local economy has been very resilient to the national and statewide trends. Much of this resilience can be attributed to stable employment, especially due to The Pennsylvania State University. The region is an attractive destination for retiring seniors and alumni. Building permit activity is on par as compared to 2016. Despite these positives, new home starts as part of the building permit activity are behind 2016, new business startups are fewer and non-University employers has had some reduction in workforce. This budget continues the careful and diligent expenditure of funds to maintain the core services while progressing with those priorities set forth in the Strategic Plan and Capital Improvement Plan which is a historical fingerprint of prior township budgets.