Goodrich-By a 5-0 vote on Monday night, the village council accepted an audit report from Lewis & Knopf for the year ending June 30, 2014.
Stephanie Kraus, senior staff accountant for Lewis & Knopf, delivered the report to the council. According to the 2014 audit, the village general fund decreased by $7,908 during the year ending June 30, with $310,906 in the village coffers.
In comparison, the 2013 audit ended with a decline of $31,548 to $318,814 in general funds.
Based on a current budget of $613,064, the village has about 51 percent, or six months in reserves, reported Kraus. In comparison, during the 2013 fiscal year $610,779 was budgeted as expenditures with 52 percent left in the coffers.
‘We started saving when times were better to keep a sufficient fund balance,? said Jakki Sidge, village administrator. ‘We are not a savings account, rather we keep enough funds available to cover emergencies.?
Village officials budgeted $601,000 in revenues for the 2014 fiscal year and $605,000 was actually reported, about $4,000 over budget. Conversely, $625,000 was budgeted for expenditures in 2014 with $613,064 reported? $12,000 under budget.
Current long term debts are $1,158,000 which includes the village office building which will be paid off in 2044, the Dutch Road Bridge project and the Erie Street repaving project completed last year.
‘Currently there are no planned large expenditures for the next year,? she said. ‘However, there will be amendments to cover the village attorney fees due to the pending lawsuit. That’s one of the biggest unknowns we have in the new budget.?
On July 25, 2014, Flint Attorney Dean T. Yeotis filed a class action in the Seventh Circuit Court for a group of Village of Goodrich residents, along with three Genesee County businesses, charging four counts surrounding the village sewage system, drains and mill pond. The plaintiffs? series of complaints seek monetary damages in excess of $25,000. The case is still pending.
‘The other issue right now will be the Wheelock & Watkins drain project and the costs,? she added.
‘We just can’t get an answer from the Genesee County Drain Commission as to the amount of the project. But, it’s unlikely anything will be resolved this year.?
Sidge also announced that $144.5 million of General Fund State of Michigan money for the state and local road and bridge program was made available to the Michigan Department of Transportation for distribution in four equal quarterly allotments to each county.
According to the distribution schedule Genesee County received $1,924,711 of which Goodrich will receive $10,639.
‘The funds from the state will go toward minor roads repair in the village,? she said.