Mayor Terry Yemen called a special meeting of Drumheller Town Council on Thursday, June 27, 2013 at 4:30 p.m.
The only agenda item was to review the 2012 financial audit for the Town, as presented by the Town auditors BDO Canada from Lacombe/Red Deer.
Highlights of the audit show the Town currently has over $9 million in reserves which are fully funded.
Also, the total debt for the Town at the end of 2012 stands at $11,590,777, compared to $12,052,809 at the end of 2011.
A special meeting of Town Council on Thursday, June 27 reviewed the 2012 financial audit for the Town. The audit reveals that the Town is well within acceptable debt servicing parameters and that Drumheller is financially healthy. Pictured above are BDO auditors Daniel Luymes, left, and Alan Litster. The complete financial audit can be found on the Town’s website.
This is well below the debt limit that is allowable under regulations for municipal debt for the Town (any municipality which exceeds the debt limit must obtain approval from the Minister of Municipal Affairs).
The Town’s revenue for 2012 totalled $16,566,274, exceeding budgeted revenues of $15,732,432. Revenues in 2011 totalled $15,537,469. Expenses in 2012 totalled $17,354,299, which is less than the 2012 budgeted amount of $18,205,002.
Commenting on the report, Councillor Jay Garbutt said it was a good report and that “we are well within our debt servicing parameters.”
Alan Litster, a partner with auditors BDO Canada from Red Deer, told The Mail the report is a “clean audit opinion” and is a “financially sound report.”
Mayor Terry Yemen, also pleased with the auditors’ report, said “the auditors’ overall general comments were that the Town is in good financial health, so that’s encouraging.” He added that “we are healthy, too, and... less than 50 per cent of our debt ceiling. There was no real significant change (from 2011) and there were no red flags, so we are happy with that.”
The complete financial audit is available on the Town’s website.
The report was unanimously accepted by Council.
Two Town projects currently underway that cross the fiscal year for 2012 and 2013 are the new Town Hall and the East Coulee Water Transmission line that are not completed.
