City of Surrey's Annual Financial Report 2021

CITY OF SURREY OVERVIEWS FINANCE DEPARTMENT

The Finance Department provides financial guidance and advisory, along with procurement, risk management, and internal audit services to support all City operations. It delivers responsive services and innovative solutions to streamline processes and facilitate citywide efficiency gains and internal controls. In addition to leading process improvements, it sets and maintains financial practices, policies and standards. The Department’s core services include:

FINANCIAL SERVICES, INCLUDING BUDGET AND ANALYSIS Prepares the City’s operating budget, capital budget, and quarterly financial reports. In addition, it reviews various corporate reports for the Senior Management Team and Council. It also provides long-term financial planning, monitoring and analyzing expenditure and revenue trends throughout the fiscal year. It then assists other departments in achieving their financial targets by providing periodic variance analysis reports. FINANCIAL REPORTING Responsible for the preparation of annual financial statements and statutory financial reporting. This division is also responsible for presenting the Five-Year Financial Plan which establishes financial and programming priorities. PAYROLL Ensures that the City employees receive their salaries accurately and on time, with the correct deductions and necessary withholdings. It is also responsible for remitting any of the withholdings or deductions of employees to appropriate authorities. INTERNAL AUDIT AND COMPLIANCE Responsible for examination and evaluation of financial and non-financial processes and programs across all City departments. Providing an independent and objective opinion on the financial processes and the control environment (comprising governance, risk management, and internal control) by evaluating their effectiveness in achieving the City's objectives.

REVENUE SERVICES Responsible for the billing and collection of property taxes and billing for annual, metered and district energy utility clients. They are also responsible for collecting fees for dog licenses, false alarms, secondary suites, and parking tickets. Revenue Services oversees Accounts Payable where their responsibilities include processing of accurate and prompt supplier payments and ensuring that the suppliers’ information is accurate and up to date in the City’s financial management system. PROCUREMENT SERVICES & CONTRACT MANAGEMENT Coordinates the procurement of high quality, cost-effective goods, and services, while ensuring all City policies are followed and best practices implemented. It follows applicable legislation and ensures appropriate public and competitive processes are applied to achieve best value; and it provides professional expertise in the areas of Purchasing, Supply Chain Management and Contract Administration. RISK MANAGEMENT SERVICES Provides consulting services to City departments on how to identify, plan for, and manage risks in their daily business. It provides service and expertise in the areas of risk identification and treatment, insurance, claims, litigation and loss control. By incorporating effective Risk Management practices, the City can identify, manage and reduce the overall cost of risk. TREASURY OPERATIONS Monitors cash flow and invests funds in a prudent manner, providing investment return and long-term security while meeting daily cash flow needs. They are responsible for the City’s relationship with its financial institution and credit/debit card payment processor.

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• Reviewed Enterprise Risk Management (“ERM”) best practices to explore opportunities in how the City is proactively managing its portfolio of risks. Draft framework is under review. • Introduced a process of demand planning for Procurement services, by collaborating with business leads to forecast goods and services that they expect to procure for upcoming solicitations. • Investigated a new digital First Aid data management system to better record injuries experienced at City facilities and identify opportunities for prevention. The process is ongoing.

• Explored data-driven decision making capabilities to develop graphical operating and capital budget reports for City departments. The reporting options are under review and the City’s IT team is assisting with this initiative. • Initiated a new procurement process to procure a new E-Procurement tool. The implementation process will conclude in 2022. • Completed rollout of new P-Card processing for staff by improving accessibility, user interface and ease of use.

• Continued to reduce the number of paper cheques being issued by the City by increasing enrollment in the direct deposit payment process. • Secured the required Provincial approvals to obtain external borrowing through the Municipal Finance Authority of BC (MFA) to fund three major projects in the 2021–2025 Five-Year Capital Financial Plan.

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