athens tn acfr fy2019 text edition

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exceed $40 million. The City Council has spent considerable time reviewing various options presented by 
the Schools and is working to determine the best answer for this request. 
Relevant Financial Policies 
Revenue policies provide for the City to budget revenues conservatively so that the chance of a revenue 
shortage during the year is remote. The City will review annually all fees and charges to assure that they 
maintain their inflation-adjusted purchasing power. The City will make every effort to avoid becoming too 
dependent on one source of revenue in order to minimize serious fluctuation in any year. The City will 
consider market rates and rates of comparable cities in the region when changing tax rates, fees and charges. 
In this regard, the City will make every effort to maintain its favorable comparative position with other 
Tennessee cities which has contributed to our economic development success. A detailed multi-year revenue 
trend analysis is utilized to assist in the budget process. 
Major Initiatives 
The City has been working with Retail Strategies to promote the City and develop relationships with 
retail businesses to encourage opening a location in Athens. A housing task force was created to work on 
increasing the residential housing market as well. Workforce development has been a focus of the City, 
McMinn County and the Economic Development Authority to have trained workers for local employers. 
Tennessee Wesleyan University in cooperation with the City and McMinn County created The LITE 
House to assist entrepreneurs in developing their ideas. 
Awards and Acknowledgements 
The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) awarded a 
Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the City of Athens for its comprehensive 
annual financial report (CAFR) for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018. This was the twenty-seventh 
consecutive year that the City has received this prestigious award. In order to be awarded a Certificate of 
Achievement, the City published an easily readable and efficiently organized CAFR. This report satisfied both 
GAAP and applicable legal requirements. 
A Certificate of Achievement is valid for a period of one year only. We believe that our current 
CAFR continues to meet the Certificate of Achievement program's requirements and we are submitting it 
to the GFOA to determine its eligibility for another certificate. 
The preparation of this CAFR on a timely basis was made possible by the dedicated service of the 
entire staff of the finance department, in addition to the City's independent certified public accountants. 
Credit must also be given to the mayor, city council, and the city manager for their unfailing support for 
maintaining the highest standards of professionalism in the management of the City of Athens' finances. 
Respectfully submitted, 
dam*Wet 
Michael L. Keith, CPA 
Director of Finance 
December 26, 2019 
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