A headline in The New York Times on August 16, 2017 read: Hartford (Connecticut), With...

50.1K

Verified Solution

Question

Accounting

A headline in The New York Times on August 16, 2017 read: Hartford (Connecticut), With Finances in Disarray, Veers Toward Bankruptcy. The article said, among other things: "Hartford, which has one of the highest property tax rates in the state, still cannot raise enough money to pay for basic government operations. Assume the following economic, demographic, and financial data was taken from Census Bureau QuickFacts (accessed August, 2017) and from Hartfords June 30, 2016 CAFR. (The financial statements, expressed in thousands of dollars), have been condensed.

Economic and demographic data
Hartford Connecticut United States
Population, 2010 census 124,775 3,574,097 308,745,538
Population, 2016 estimate 123,243 3,576,452 323,127,513
Percent, high school grad. or higher 70.6% 89.9% 86.7%
Median household income $30,630 $70,331 $53,889
Per capita income $17,311 $38,803 $28,930
Individuals living below poverty line 4.0% 10.5% 13.5%
2016 unemployment rate (source: CAFR) 10.3% 5.5% 5.3%

CITY OF HARTFORD
General Fund
Balance Sheet
June 30, 2016
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $60,524
Receivables (mostly taxes) 84,332
Total assets $144,856
Liabilities $55,007
Deferred inflows of resources 75,718
Fund balance:
Assigned $8,663
Unassigned 5,468
Total fund balance 14,131
Total liabilities, deferred inflows
of resources, and fund balance $144,856

CITY OF HARTFORD
General Fund
Statement of Revenues, Expenditures,
and Changes in Fund Balance
For the Year Ended June 30, 2016
Total revenues $565,580
Total expenditures 565,754
Excess (deficiency) of revenues over expenditures -174
Other financing sources (uses):
Transfers in $5,438
Transfers out -13,059
Total other financing sources (uses) -7,621
Net change in fund balance -7,795
Fund balance, beginning of year 21,926
Fund balance, end of year $14,131

Other comments a. The Debt Service Fund had a beginning fund balance of $97,174 thousand. The Debt Service Fund statement of revenues, expenditures, and changes in fund balances for fiscal year 2016 shows $72,734 thousand of debt service expenditures, zero revenues, and $9,302 thousand of transfers in. It also shows significant inflows from refunding existing debt and the issuance of new debt. The same general pattern occurred in fiscal year 2015. Hence, it is reasonable to assume that most of the years debt service expenditures was financed, not by tax revenues, but rather by rolling over existing debt issuing new debt or drawing down the fund balance. b. Hartfords outstanding general obligation debt increased from $512.9 million at the beginning of fiscal year 2016 to $683.2 million at the end of the year. The CAFR reports that the assessed value of taxable property was $3,623,072,000 and the actual value of taxable property was $6,664,914,000. (You can calculate Hartfords personal income by multiplying the population by the per capita income.) Calculate the following ratios: Quick Ratio Answer

Days' cash on hand Answer

Budgetary cushion Answer

% Operating margin Answer

% Debt burden (using value of property) Answer

% Debt burden (using personal income) Answer

% Round all ratios to one decimal place.

Answer & Explanation Solved by verified expert
Get Answers to Unlimited Questions

Join us to gain access to millions of questions and expert answers. Enjoy exclusive benefits tailored just for you!

Membership Benefits:
  • Unlimited Question Access with detailed Answers
  • Zin AI - 3 Million Words
  • 10 Dall-E 3 Images
  • 20 Plot Generations
  • Conversation with Dialogue Memory
  • No Ads, Ever!
  • Access to Our Best AI Platform: Flex AI - Your personal assistant for all your inquiries!
Become a Member

Other questions asked by students