athens tn acfr fy2025

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CITY OF ATHENS, TENNESSEE
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
JUNE 30, 2025
A - 94
NOTE 11 – ON-BEHALF PAYMENTS
The State of Tennessee makes on-behalf payments to the State's Tennessee OPEB Plan and the 
Teacher Group OPEB Plan for retired teachers of the Board. GASB Statement No. 24 requires 
that on-behalf payments be recognized in the Board's financial statements. During the year ended 
June 30, 2025, the State of Tennessee made contributions to healthcare plans on behalf of the 
Board as follows:
Amount
Teacher Group OPEB Plan $ 135,350
Tennessee OPEB Plan 4,428
Total $ 139,778
These amounts were recognized as revenue and expenditure/expense in the Board's General
Purpose Fund and in governmental activities on the government-wide financial statements. For 
more information regarding the above-mentioned plans, see Note 10.
NOTE 12 – DEFERRED COMPENSATION
The City and the Utilities Board offer their employees deferred compensation plans created in
accordance with Internal Revenue Code Section 457. The plans, available to all employees, 
permit them to defer a portion of their salary until future years. The deferred compensation is not 
available to employees until termination, retirement, death or an unforeseeable emergency.
NOTE 13 – TAX ABATEMENTS
The City of Athens has an agreement with McMinn County and the Industrial Development 
Board of McMinn County for a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) program, as authorized under 
Tennessee Code Annotated 7-53. The program offers real and personal property tax abatements to 
entice new and expanding companies to select Athens as the target of their investment for 
purposes of economic development.
The criterion for eligibility includes providing new capital investment and job growth in Athens. 
There are also provisions for retained jobs if certain criteria are met. Projects eligible for the 
abatement program include manufacturing companies, distribution centers, data center and 
service projects, research and development projects, and pollution control projects. The program 
provides for a 50% reduction in the real and personal property assessed values for a certain 
number of years depending on the level of investment and/or jobs created. There is also an option 
for a declining balance abatement for up to six years based on the same criteria, which provides 
for an abatement of 80% in year one, 60% in year two, 40% in year three, and 20% in years four 
through six. 
Abatements may be recaptured in any year whereby the criteria are not met. Each agreement 
contains the methodology for calculating the percentage of repayment. The recovery payment is 
due with the annual report of the abatement.
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