For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport (Springfield, IL) received an unqualified, or “clean opinion” of its financial report from the CPA firm of Eck, Schafer & Punke. Jim Hogge from the CPA firm said, “We found no deficiencies during the audit. The Airport Authority’s staff did a fantastic job preparing for us and the audit went extremely smooth.”
According to the audit, the airport’s net assets, total assets minus total liabilities, was up over last year at $64.3 million. The Authority had a net gain of $1,460,000 in accordance with applicable accounting rules and regulations, compared to a net gain of $1,085,000 in 2014. The primary reason for the increase in net income was a $311,000 increase in overall revenue. In an effort to provide a more realistic picture of the financial posture of the Airport Authority at fiscal year end, the exclusion of depreciation of $4,706,000 and grant revenues of $4,149,000 would result in a positive net income value of $2,017,000. This is the highest net income, excluding depreciation expense and grant contributions, in the last nine years.
“The Airport Authority has done an excellent job of maintaining revenues while holding the line on expenses this past fiscal year,” said Mike Houston, Chair of the Airport Authority’s Budget and Finance Committee.
Frank J. Vala, Chair for the Board of Commissioners, summarized the financial report by saying, “The Airport Authority has done an excellent job managing various challenges in the industry and other uncontrollable variables that affect the execution of the airport’s budget and its financial standing”. He concluded, “We have made many positive strides during this reporting period, both operationally and financially.”
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to the Springfield Airport Authority by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, or CAFR. The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
“One of the Springfield Airport Authority’s core principles is to be enterprising. Our CAFR underscores our commitment to have an entrepreneurial mindset that emphasizes innovation and financial efficiency,” said Frank J. Vala, Chair of the Springfield Airport Authority. Mike Houston, the Authority’s Budget and Finance Committee Chair added, “This recognition is a direct reflection on the efforts of our staff and their attention to detail; they are to be commended for this achievement”.
The Springfield Airport Authority is a multi-year winner of this award having received it the past twelve (12) consecutive years. In order to be awarded the Certificate of Achievement, a government entity must publish an easily readable and efficiently organized comprehensive annual financial report whose contents conform to program standards. Such reports must satisfy both Generally Acceptable Accounting Principals (GAAP) and applicable legal requirements.
The CAFR was judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program which includes demonstrating a constructive “spirit of disclosure” to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR. The GFOA is a non-profit professional association serving approximately 17,000 government finance professionals.
