Penn Yan Fiscal Health & Financial Capacity Dashboard

Understanding the baseline financial position of the Village of Penn Yan—what the numbers mean for residents, and where flexibility exists (or doesn't).

Plain-Language Summary

The Village of Penn Yan is solvent and paying its bills. The Village meets its payroll, maintains services, and has not defaulted on any obligations. By these measures, Penn Yan is financially functional.

However, financial flexibility is limited. The Village operates with relatively thin margins between revenues and expenditures. While this is not unusual for small municipalities, it means there is little room for unexpected costs or revenue shortfalls without making difficult choices.

Most importantly, short-term borrowing is doing more work than reserves. Bond Anticipation Notes (BANs)—temporary loans rolled over annually—are being used not just to bridge construction timing, but to manage cash flow in ways that transfer interest rate risk and refinancing uncertainty to future years.

This is not a crisis, but it is a constraint. Penn Yan's financial capacity cannot be evaluated without understanding what "stable" actually means in the context of municipal finance—and what it does not mean.

Key Findings

Penn Yan is operationally solvent — all current bills and payroll obligations are being met on schedule
Reserves are below recommended levels for a municipality of Penn Yan's size and complexity (per NYS Comptroller guidelines)
Revenue growth is flat — property tax revenue has remained essentially stable while operating costs continue to rise
Short-term debt (BANs) are being rolled over repeatedly — increasing exposure to interest rate changes and refinancing risk
Utility funds (electric, water, sewer) operate independently — and face different financial pressures than the general fund

Financial Position Exhibits

Charts and data visualizations will be added here:

• Fund balance trends (5-year view)
• Revenue vs. expenditure comparison
• AFR statement of net position breakdown

Source Documents

Village of Penn Yan Annual Financial Report (AFR) FY 2024–2025, pages [to be specified]
Independent Audit Notice (BST & Co.)
NYS Office of the State Comptroller — Financial Condition Analysis Guidelines

All analysis on this page is derived from publicly available documents filed with New York State. Document links will be added as content is finalized.

Open Questions & What's Missing

What analyses are not publicly available:

Multi-year cash flow projections under different revenue scenarios
Stress-test modeling for major capital repairs or emergencies
Detailed breakdown of general fund transfers to other funds
Long-term plan for converting BANs to permanent financing

What documents should exist if claims are accurate: Any claim that Penn Yan has "adequate reserves" or is "well-positioned for growth" should be supported by formal financial capacity assessments filed with the NYS Comptroller or included in audit management letters.

Debt & Borrowing

How Is the Village Financing Its Obligations?

An examination of how Penn Yan uses long-term bonds versus short-term notes, what this means for financial flexibility, and where interest rate risk lives.

Plain-Language Summary

Not all debt is the same. Municipalities borrow money in different ways, and the type of debt matters as much as the amount. Penn Yan uses two primary forms of borrowing:

Long-term bonds — fixed-rate loans with set repayment schedules, typically 10–30 years
Bond Anticipation Notes (BANs) — short-term loans (1 year) that are meant to be temporary but can be rolled over multiple times

Heavy reliance on BANs creates structural risk. BANs are supposed to be a bridge—you borrow short-term while planning a capital project, then convert to a long-term bond once the project is complete. But when BANs are rolled over year after year without conversion, they become a form of ongoing floating-rate debt. This exposes the Village to:

Interest rate changes each time they're refinanced
Market conditions that may make refinancing expensive or difficult
Cash flow pressure if multiple BANs come due at the same time

This is not illegal or unethical—but it is riskier than permanent financing. The longer BANs remain outstanding, the more they function like unfunded liabilities with uncertain future costs.

Key Findings

BANs are being rolled over repeatedly — some have been outstanding for multiple years without conversion to permanent bonds
Interest rate exposure is increasing — as rates rise nationally, BAN refinancing costs are climbing faster than locked-in bond rates would
Total debt service consumes a fixed percentage of the budget — leaving less flexibility for other needs
No public multi-year plan for BAN conversion — it is unclear which BANs will be permanently financed and when
Debt capacity is not unlimited — NYS constitutional limits on borrowing constrain how much more debt the Village can take on

Why Heavy BAN Use Matters to Residents

When a village relies on rolling over short-term debt instead of locking in long-term financing, residents inherit three forms of risk:

Interest rate risk — future refinancing could cost significantly more if rates continue to rise
Timing risk — if multiple BANs come due during a revenue shortfall, the Village may be forced into unfavorable refinancing terms
Capacity risk — outstanding BANs count against the Village's borrowing limit, reducing capacity for other necessary projects

Debt Analysis Exhibits

Charts and data visualizations will be added here:

• Total debt outstanding by type (bonds vs. BANs)
• Debt service schedule (5-year projection)
• BAN rollover history and interest rate trends
• Debt as percentage of assessed property value

Source Documents

Village of Penn Yan AFR — Debt Notes (Schedule of Outstanding Debt)
Independent Audit Footnotes — Long-Term Liabilities Section
NYS Office of the State Comptroller — Municipal Debt Management Guidelines
BAN Issuance & Refinancing Resolutions (Village Board Minutes)

Debt data is extracted from audited financial statements. Specific page references will be added as documentation is finalized.

Open Questions & What's Missing

What analyses are not publicly available:

Formal debt capacity analysis showing how much additional borrowing is feasible
Multi-year plan identifying which BANs will be converted to bonds and when
Interest rate sensitivity analysis (what happens if rates rise another 2%?)
Comparison of actual interest costs vs. what permanent financing would have cost

What documents should exist: Any claim that BAN rollovers are "temporary" or "part of the plan" should be supported by formal debt management policy resolutions and conversion timelines included in the capital improvement plan.

Loans & Bonds

What Is the Village Committed to Repay?

Content Under Development

This section will provide detailed analysis of specific loan obligations, bond purposes, repayment schedules, and the relationship between asset life and financing terms.

Topics to be covered:

Purpose of major debt issuances
Fund-by-fund repayment responsibility
Mismatch risk between asset life and financing
Capital purpose vs. debt maturity analysis

Return to Dashboard

Department Budgets

Where the Money Goes Each Year

Content Under Development

This section will break down how Penn Yan's general fund is allocated across departments, distinguishing between fixed obligations and discretionary spending.

Topics to be covered:

Fixed vs. discretionary spending breakdown
Sensitivity to revenue shortfalls
Staffing and operating cost rigidity
General Fund budget breakdown by department

Return to Dashboard

Utility Systems

Why Rates Matter More Than Taxes for Many Residents

Content Under Development

This section will examine Penn Yan's municipal electric, water, and sewer systems—how they're funded, their financial health, and why utility rates often have a bigger impact on household budgets than property taxes.

Topics to be covered:

Enterprise fund independence and constraints
Electric fund strength vs. water/sewer pressures
Purchased power costs and regulatory exposure
Utility expansion costs and development impact

Return to Dashboard

Reserves & Financial Risk

What Happens When Something Breaks?

Content Under Development

This section will analyze Penn Yan's reserve levels, emergency funding capacity, and what happens when unexpected expenses arise.

Topics to be covered:

Purpose and proper use of reserves
Current reserve levels vs. NYS Comptroller guidelines
Relationship between reserves and emergency borrowing
Historical reserve usage patterns

Return to Dashboard

Peer Village Comparison

Is This Normal for Similar Communities?

Content Under Development

This section will compare Penn Yan's financial metrics to similarly-sized New York villages with comparable service levels and utility systems.

Topics to be covered:

Debt per capita comparison
Reserve levels relative to peer communities
Utility complexity and financial pressure comparison
Why peer comparisons provide context

Return to Dashboard

Development Impact

Who Pays First, and Who Pays If It Fails?

Content Under Development

This section will examine the fiscal implications of new development—the gap between upfront infrastructure costs and long-term revenue generation, and who bears the risk.

Topics to be covered:

Timing gap between costs and revenues
Utility expansion realities and cost drivers
Risk transfer to existing residents
Fiscal impact analysis methodology

Return to Dashboard

Accountability Questions

What Must Be Answered With Documents

Content Under Development

This section will provide a formal list of questions that can only be answered with specific documents from the Annual Financial Report and other public records.

Topics to be covered:

AFR-anchored question framework
Claims vs. evidence standards
Missing document checklist
Why transparency serves as risk control

Return to Dashboard

Document-Based Accountability

This dashboard is a living resource, grounded in public records and audited financial statements. As new data becomes available or sections are completed, this page will be updated to reflect the most current information.

How This Dashboard Works

Source-First: Every claim is tied to a specific public document
Plain Language: Financial concepts explained without jargon
Context Matters: Numbers mean little without comparison and explanation
Updated Regularly: New sections and data added as analysis is completed

Return to Dashboard Transparency & Watchdog

Methodology: All financial analysis follows NYS Office of the State Comptroller guidelines for municipal fiscal stress assessment.

Questions or corrections? Contact us through the contact page with specific document references.