CAFR1.com | I copied a communication sent to Arizona Legislative head – Judy Burges’s office on 2/15/10 in reply to an email challenge she sent me on 02/13/10. No reply so far by email or return call. She threw out bait for me to walk in the door without the current factual data so I would be without ammunition and in my reply I brought out the tanks up front to have in hand for if and when I walked in the door. Oooops, I reversed the intended sting..
You may find the email challenge I sent to the editorial staff of the San Fransisco Chronicle this evening interesting reading. It is copied below. Please share with your friends that may learn from what is said here.
—– Original Message —–
From: “Judy M. Burges”
To: “Bill Blankstyn”
Sent: Wednesday, February 10, 2010 6:01 AM
Subject: RE: Arizona has a $25 Billion Surplus based on Review of
FY 2008 Arizona Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
Good morning Bill! You have been listening to Walter Burien. If
the state has this money, please come down to the capitol and show us where it is in the books first hand. I don’t like robbing Peter to pay Paul. Selling state buildings and going into debt. If I knew where to find it, would certainly cut out all the proposed tax increases. Call my office
at 602-926-5861 and make an appointment and I will be there waiting
to take you over to Joint Legislative Budget Committee. Judy
_______________________________________________
From: WalterBurien@CAFR1.com
Sent: Sat 2/13/2010 2:03 AM
To: Bill Blankstyn
Cc: Judy M. Burges
Subject: Re: Fw: Arizona has a $25 Billion Surplus based on Review
of FY 2008 Arizona Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report
Bill: There is no money hidden, it is there in plain sight. It is not in
one location but spread out in many locations.
Looking and learning is the only way an individual will learn so I
suggest you start by: Find out how many local governments there are in Arizona. Each has their own AFR (Annual Financial Report) separate from each other. In every state the “collective” holdings from all local governments in a state will dwarf what the state shows.
As an example of a state CAFR surplus review from 2004, look at Arizona as shown by (deceased – 07/11/04) Gerald Klatt – http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-AZ-S1.htm
The numbers have changed in 2010 but the same structure for review
is the same.
Then look at a few local governments “within” AZ:
Maricopa County
http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-MaricopaCounty-AZ-C1.htm
Mesa http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-Mesa-AZ-CY1.htm
Phoenix http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-Phoenix-AZ-CY1.htm
Pima County http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-PimaCounty-AZ-C1.htm
Scottsdale http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-Scottsdale-AZ-CY1.htm
Tempe http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-Tempe-AZ-CY1.htm
Glendale http://cafrman.com/Articles/Art-Glendale-AZ-C1.htm
Walter Burien – CAFR1
P. O. Box 2112
Saint Johns, AZ 85936
Tel. (928) 445-3532
_______________________________________________
From: “Judy M. Burges”
Subject:
RE: Fw: Arizona has a $25 Billion Surplus based on Review of FY 2008 Arizona Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
Date:
Sat, February 13, 2010 7:13 pm
To:
“Walter Burien”
Walter:
I will set up a meeting with you and our Joint Legislative Budget Committee, appropriations and any one else you want. Just come on down to the capitol and show us where the money is so we can cut out all the tax increases, fund sweeps and robbing Peter to pay Paul. My office number is 602-926-5861. I look forward to hearing from you.
Judy
_______________________________________________
From: “Walter Burien”
Subject:
RE: Fw: Arizona has a $25 Billion Surplus based on Review of FY 2008 Arizona Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
Date:
Mon, February 15, 2010 5:57 am
To:
“Judy M. Burges”
Judy:
Good to hear from you. The public uses expressions like “where is all
the money?”
In reality there are several areas for review when looking at any government body:
1. Statistical review of that local government entity growth, 3, 5, 10, 15 years vs. private sector “population” growth over the same time period.
2. General purpose operating funds are tax tagged categories and are referred to as the public promoted budget. Or as Carol Springer, ex treasurer used to say when I brought up the point that AZ was bringing in 3 to 4 times the “gross ” revenue over what was shown in the “Budget Report” she would say: “No, no, no, it is only 2 to 3 times
over..” An audit review of “all” investment fund assets held by any party for the state for any purpose needs to be conducted to see standing totals and reviewed for true need and correct actuarial projections used to determine “true” balances needed. Standing balances here for just state government (excluding the 1200+ other local gov in AZ) the last time I looked (2001) were standing at about
52 billion dollars. One thing you may want to put into perspective is that as seen in the 1972 AZ State CAFR the budget was 1.8 billion and gross income was 2.1 billion. Come 1999 the budget was 14 billion and gross income was 34 billion. The growth factor was very strong in government and population growth over that period but look at the separation between “budget” and “gross” income over that time period.
3. Per: “/Just come on down to the capitol and show us where the money is so we can cut out all the tax increases/” is not a productive exercise. If you wish to accomplish meeting budgets, maintain personnel, and start the path to lowering and then eliminating taxation without tax increases at this time, I would suggest opening the door for conversations to take place between the AZ State Auditor, Treasurer, and myself with those goals in mind. Upon progress in statistical and audit review, then a valid presentation can be made to accomplish the stated purpose backed up by true parameters verified at present.
Any complex issue becomes simple when comprehended with true application within set parameters determined by factual review. Too many people are throwing themselves at leaves and branches in the forest where they become blinded to the true scope and size of the forest itself. I focus on the forest..
Upon the AZ Auditor and Treasurer giving you the feedback that remedy is there after discussions and reviews held, then you can brief the governor with the parameters to effect the same in application.
I look forward to talking with you.
Walter Burien – CAFR1
P. O. Box 2112
Saint Johns, AZ 85936
Tel. (928) 445-3532
CC: Bill Blankstyn
_______________________________________________
COMMENT SUBMITTED AT – http://www.sfgate.com/next10/
It was not from the options offered but what was not shown. Collective local governments in California are now over 14,000. The State Government is the largest but collective totals from local governments from within the State dwarf the revenue pool of the state.
Collective CA local government’s each have many specialty investment accounts (many thousands of separate funds large and small). The total from all are in excess of eight-trillion dollars. (conservative estimate)
To resolve the so called “Budget Shortfall” I would do a standing audit of “all” local government investment funds and then from each deduct an equal percentage to satisfy any budget shortfall “with” a 50 billion dollar cushion to last through the rough times… the “equal”
percentage would probably be less than 2% to accomplish that objective, and done deal..
People have been sound-bite conditioned to think Government only generates tax income and that is where the public’s focus is directed. In reality in combination of all local governments and the state from CA the investment capital is massive (noted above in excess of 8 trillion dollars) that generates in return revenue greater than all taxation collected in the state.
The public has been kept oblivious to the scope and size of these collective funds and through intentional misdirection pointed at tax income and expenditures dealt with. So your pie charts that give the impression of 100% is actually just 1/3rd of the pie when it comes down to government’s true “gross income”
Now you will hear expressions like: “Here is our rainy day fund” and in reality that is like your pocket change jar you keep in the kitchen compared to the many other thousands of other government investment funds never mentioned.
You will also hear when investments are mentioned: “Oh, that is our employees retirement Funds” WRONG… The retirement funds are but one category.. (a large one) then you have self insurance funds; advance forward liability funds; special liability funds; enterprise forward project funds; and the list goes on and on. Just on the state level you are looking at around 12,000 separate specialty investment funds large and small. And with an audit of all local government specialty investment funds would be well in excess of 100,000 specialty investment accounts.
Never a peep about this to the public, and the reason why? DUE TO THE MONEY AND CONTROL involved! Governments from all across the country have been developing their non-tax income for over 65 years.
The public was presented with “Budget Reports” to account for where “Tax” income and expenditures were applied “for the year”. To see the same local governments “gross income; standing investment wealth derived over decades; the investment return generated; and the enterprise operations massive wealth generated, you must look at the same local governments Annual Financial Report, or as government calls it, their: Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). A Google search will pull up many.
For the CA State CAFR just put on the search line: “The State of California” CAFR
The state CAFR will pop up for downloading. You can do the same for “The city of Los Angeles” or Burbank, San Fransisco, Sacramento, County of Los Angeles, etc., etc., etc….
Now a local government like the State of CA can say: “We have a fifty-billion dollar shortfall on our budget” (Tax Revenue) and a “true” review of the state’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report could show the state 200 billion in the black. The budget will be shown in the CAFR and it is only 1/3rd of the pie when it comes down to gross income…
Some people have referred to this as having two sets of books. Well, there are not two sets, there is only one and that is the CAFR of which the budget is a segment thereof.. an inferior report to the CAFR.
The silence (is golden) maintained as far as not a peep as to government’s Annual Financial Report and non-tax income shown that most Cities: Counties; School Districts; State Universities; Enterprise operations; and the states prepare each year I call “The Biggest Game in Town” of which I put a video up on Google 12/25/08 that had over 870,000 views in the first 5 days worldwide and not a word from the media; controlled education; the political parties; or government itself. That silence is golden rule present over the last several decades is well entrenched due to the money and control involved. The public would not be pleased to find out that they have been played like this to say the least..
I challenge the SFC to publish in the next 30 days, and do so conspicuously the links to download say the top 200 local California government CAFRs with it noted: “The SFC strongly suggests that every taxpayer carefully review their local government’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)”
The CAFRs are local governments “Holy Grail” of accounting showing collective wealth that has built up over decades not as a budget report that primarily shows “TAX” income and expenditures for the year….
Truly yours,
Walter Burien – CAFR1.com
Also See:
CAFR: UC budget fully funded with one-fifth of one percent of state of CA “investments”
