New Clerk OrientationRole of the Clerk/Comptroller as County

Finance OfficerDecember 3, 2012 1:15 -2:30 pm

Hon. Kirk Reams, Jefferson County ClerkHon. Brent Thurmond, CPA, Wakulla County ClerkHon. Jeff Smith, CPA, Indian River County Clerk

Role of the Clerk

Article VIII, Section 1, subsection (d) specifically says the clerk of the circuit court shall be the ex-officio clerk of the board, auditor, recorder and custodian of all county funds when not otherwise provided for by county charter or special act of LegislatureFlorida Statute 125.17 specifically gives the Clerk of the Circuit Court for a county the authority to be the Clerk and Accountant for the Board of County Commissioners

County Government Structure

Citizens/Voters

County Commissioners

Other Constitutional

Officers

County Government Structure

Clerk of CourtComptroller

Tax Collector

Supervisor of Elections

Sheriff

Property Appraiser

County Judge(s)

Citizens/Voters

Who are the players on the Board of County Commissioners

County Commission – size of Commission depends on size of County Typical County has 5 Commissioners Divided into Districts County Administrator – serves at the pleasure of the Commission Responsible for day to day operations of

entire County and its components

Who are the players on the Board of County Commissioners

Office of Management & Budget Director – serves at the pleasure of the County Administrator Staff might include one or more Budget

AnalystsOffice of the Comptroller/Finance- serves at the pleasure of the Clerk of Circuit Court & Comptroller F.S. 28.12 and 125.17

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

Financial Statement preparation Make all fiscal year end adjustments and

accruals for reporting purposes Obtain draft statements from all

Constitutional Officers; Combine statements with BCC financial

information to produce draft comprehensive financial report for external auditors;

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

Accounts Payable all vendor, contractor, debt and

regulatory payments for the BCC Insure all vendor invoices, requests for

contractor payments etc. are properly approved via department head or designee, purchase order or Commission approved

Comply with Statute 218.735 “Prompt Payment Act

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

Accounts Receivable Record all accrued revenue Reconcile collections with accrued

revenue from prior year Record all current receiptsGrant Accounting Record all Grant Revenue Record all Grant Expenditures Prepare Schedule of Major Grants for Audit

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

Payroll Process and issue paychecks for all BCC

employees Timely deposit all withholding and

payroll taxes to regulatory agencies Timely file all payroll related forms to

regulatory agencies Administer County Cafeteria Plan Administer Deferred Compensation

Plans

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

Enterprise Accounting – all business like activities of the BCCDebt Management Timely payment of all debt obligations Review all debt issuances Custody and accounting of all debt

proceeds Prepare Debt schedules for reporting

purposes

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

County Property Capitalize and tag all tangible County property Record capitalized property Conduct annual inventory of County PropertyCounty Treasurer Cash management Banking Contracts Investment of County funds pursuant to

approved policies Reporting of investment results

Comptroller/Finance Functions (cont’d)

County Treasurer (continued) Article V and Article VIII mandates that

the Clerk/Comptroller be the custodian of ALL County Funds

This has been a source of litigation between Clerks and BOCC - Brock Case

County Auditor

Set out by Constitution Article VIII Set out by case law Powers Case Brock CaseDesign, install and test Internal ControlsPre-audit Public Purpose Legality of Expenditure Properly Budgeted

County Budget Office

Creates BCC County wide BudgetResponsible for monitoring expenditures to insure budget authority is not exceededInterim reporting to BCC of Budget to Actual Results

Clerk of Circuit Court/Comptroller

Above all, the Clerk/Comptroller is a Public Trustee Responsible for promoting accountability, transparency and good stewardship of citizen’s money.