loading…
loading…
loading…
_____ 763 d. Any state agency that is required to return federal grant funding as a result of not fulfilling the specifications of a grant, shall, as soon as practicable but no later than November 1st, report to the Chairmen of the Senate Finance and Appropriations and House Appropriations Committees of such forfeiting of federal grant funding. e.1) Any entity specifically identified in this Act as a recipient of state funds that is not a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia shall annually provide a report delineating the use of the funds, as well as the outcomes generated because of the funds. The report will be due by September 15 each year and shall be submitted to the state agency distributing the funding. The report will be used to help determine whether future funding should be provided by the state to the reporting entity. 2) For an entity providing services or programs on behalf of the Commonwealth, at a minimum the entity's report shall provide a description of the programs or services being provided, the number of individuals served or treated, and any outcomes from the program or services that demonstrate their success or benefits to individuals or families in Virginia. 3) For an entity receiving state funds for the improvement of facilities, at a minimum the entity's report shall provide a description of the improvements, any increase in visitors or patrons served by the facility or programs held at the facility due to the improvements, and any economic benefits to the Commonwealth resulting from these expenditures. 4) The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to any entity that has an existing reporting requirement in this act or the Code of Virginia for the use of state funds. § 4-8.03 LOCAL GOVERNMENTS a.1. The Auditor of Public Accounts shall establish a workgroup to develop criteria for a preliminary determination that a local government may be in fiscal distress. Such criteria shall be based upon information regularly collected by the Commonwealth or otherwise regularly made public by the local government. This information includes expenditure reports submitted to the Auditor, budget information posted on local government websites, and reports prepared by the Commission on Local Government on revenue fiscal stress. Information provided by the Virginia Retirement System, the Virginia Resources Authority, the Virginia Public Building Authority, and other state and regional authorities concerning late or missed debt service payments shall be shared with the Auditor. Fiscal distress as used in this context shall mean a situation whereby the provision and sustainability of public services is threatened by various administrative and financial shortcomings including but not limited to cash flow issues; inability to pay expenses; revenue shortfalls; deficit spending; structurally imbalanced budgets; billing and revenue collection inadequacies and discrepancies; debt overload; failure to meet obligations to authorities, school divisions, or political subdivisions of the Commonwealth; and/or lack of trained and qualified staff to process administrative and financial transactions. Fiscal distress may be caused by factors internal to the unit of government or external to the unit of government and in various degrees such conditions may or may not be controllable by management, or the local governing body, or its constitutional officers. 2. Based upon the criteria established by the workgroup and using information identified above, the Auditor of Public Accounts shall establish a prioritized early warning system. Under the prioritized early warning system, the Auditor of Public Accounts shall establish a regular process whereby it reviews data on at least an annual basis to make a preliminary determination that a local government is in fiscal distress. 3. For local governments where the Auditor of Public Accounts has made a preliminary determination of fiscal distress based upon the early warning system criteria, the Auditor of Public Accounts shall notify the local governing body of its preliminary determination that it may meet the criteria for fiscal distress. Based upon the request of the local governing body or chief executive officer, the Auditor of Public Accounts may conduct a review and request documents and data from the local government. Such review shall consider factors including, but not limited to, budget processes, debt, borrowing, expenses and payables, revenues and receivables, and other areas including staffing, and the identification of external variables contributing to a locality's financial position, and if so, the scope of the issues involved. Any local governing body that receives requests for information from the Auditor of Public Accounts pursuant to such preliminary determination based on the above described threshold levels shall acknowledge receipt of such a request and shall ensure that a response is provided within the time frames specified by the Auditor of Public Accounts. After such review, if the Auditor of Public Accounts is of the opinion that state assistance, oversight, or targeted intervention is needed, either to further assess, help stabilize, or remediate the situation, the Auditor shall notify the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees, and the governing body of the local government in writing outlining specific issues or actions that need to be addressed by state intervention. 4. The notification issued by the Auditor of Public Accounts pursuant to paragraph 3 above shall satisfy the notification requirement necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act in paragraph b.3 below. b.1. The Director of the Department of Planning and Budget shall identify any amounts remaining unexpended from general fund appropriations in this Act as of June 30 of each year, which constitute state aid to local governments. The Director shall provide a listing of such amounts designated by item number and by program on or before August 15 of each year, to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee.