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Village of Penn Yan
Financial Report

May 31, 2025 — Outside Independent Audit

Comprehensive analysis of Penn Yan's financial position, debt obligations, and fiscal stability based on audited financial statements

Audit Date: May 31, 2025 Fiscal Year End: May 31 Independent Audit
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Executive Summary — Outside Independent Audit (BST & Co.)

Village of Penn Yan | Fiscal Year Ending May 31, 2025

This page summarizes the Village of Penn Yan's independently audited financial statements for the fiscal year ending May 31, 2025. The audit was performed by an outside CPA firm in accordance with auditing standards, to determine whether the Village's basic financial statements are presented fairly under U.S. governmental accounting rules (GAAP/GASB).

1 What the Audited Statements Show (Government-wide "Big Picture")

The audited Statement of Net Position reports the Village's combined financial position across both Governmental Activities (tax-supported operations) and Business-Type Activities (utility operations: electric, water, sewer).

Key Audited Balances:

  • Cash and cash equivalents: $8,090,292 total (Governmental $3,342,214; Utilities $4,748,078)
  • Restricted cash and cash equivalents: Governmental $1,018,023; Utilities $2,439,175

Why this matters: cash and restricted cash are the most "real-world" liquidity indicators residents can understand, separate from infrastructure accounting values.

2 Net Position ("Net Worth") and Why It's Not Cash

The Village reports Total Net Position ≈ $42.3 million, but a major portion of that is tied up in long-lived capital assets (infrastructure and equipment) rather than liquid reserves. The statements define key net position components like "net investment in capital assets," "restricted," and "unrestricted."

Plain-English takeaway: The Village can report a high net position while still facing cash, debt service, or rate pressure because infrastructure value is not spendable like cash.

3 Operating Reserves at the Fund Level (What's Most Comparable to "Savings")

The audited notes provide a direct breakdown of fund balances (governmental funds). At May 31, 2025:

General Fund

  • • Total fund balance: $5,679,119
  • • Unassigned (most flexible): $3,028,086
  • • Capital reserve: $734,885
  • • LOSAP reserve: $1,729,149

Capital Projects Fund

  • • Unassigned deficit: $(856,340)
  • Expected to be relieved once long-term financing is obtained

Why this matters: General Fund unassigned balance is often the best quick indicator of near-term resiliency. A capital projects deficit can signal active capital spending and future borrowing.

4 Long-term Obligations (Debt + Pensions + LOSAP)

The audited long-term liability schedule shows major components of structural obligations:

Governmental Activities (Tax-Supported)

  • Bonds payable: $705,000
  • Compensated absences: $653,787
  • Net pension liability: $2,431,120
  • LOSAP obligation: $1,928,503

Business-Type Activities (Utilities)

  • Bonds and state loan: $3,764,482
  • Compensated absences: $348,454
  • Net pension liability: $967,288

Plain-English takeaway: Even with a strong asset base, pension/LOSAP obligations and debt service are ongoing structural costs that can tighten future budgets.

5 Interfund Relationships (How Utilities and the General Fund Interact)

The audited notes disclose that utility funds financially interact with the General Fund via PILOTs and rent:

  • PILOT payments in FY 2025: Water $30,674 | Sewer $972 | Electric $60,207
  • Utility rent paid to General Fund: $215,205

Why this matters: This shows the Village's governmental and utility finances are connected; changes in utility performance or capital needs can indirectly affect broader fiscal stability.

Key "Investigative" Disclosure Residents Should Know

BST's report explicitly states that required supplementary information was omitted from the published financial statements package—specifically:

  • Management's Discussion & Analysis (MD&A)
  • Budget-to-actual schedule (General Fund)
  • Pension schedules (net pension liability and contributions)
  • LOSAP pension liability schedule

The auditors note this missing information is normally considered essential context for financial reporting, though they also state their opinions on the basic financial statements are not affected by the omission.

Plain-English takeaway: The core audited statements can still be fairly presented, but the omission reduces transparency for trend analysis and year-to-year context.

Bottom Line

The independent audit package supports a "stable but obligation-bearing" picture:

  • The Village has meaningful liquidity (cash + restricted cash) and a sizable General Fund cushion.
  • At the same time, it carries material long-term obligations (debt, pensions, LOSAP) and ongoing capital financing dynamics (including a capital projects deficit expected to be resolved through financing).

The most important civic question is not "Did the auditor sign off?" (they did on the basic statements), but whether future capital needs and long-term obligations can be absorbed without tax/rate pressure, especially if new infrastructure burdens are introduced.

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