Surplus
Funds
A Battle Between Those
Who Desire Fiscal Responsibility
and
those
Who Demand Selfish
Control
We've been relatively quiet regarding the goings on in Sun City Anthem since the board election because frankly, it's still hard for many of us to comprehend the results...the questionable results...
...that brought us the latest bunch now in
charge...
... a bunch whose credentials are commensurate
with the likes of "Moe , "Curly", "Larry"...
...two bureaucratic "Lucy"s...
... with the addition of "Alfalfa" as the Association Treasurer.
Yes, it's that bad....we have perhaps the most inexperienced and unknowledgeable group of individuals as Board members than at any time in the history of Sun City Anthem....
...at a time of conversion
to self-management that's perhaps the most important time of our seventeen year
history.
It appears the latest has to do with the word
"surplus".
What is it, and how should it be
handled?
Surplus is "excess
money" not spent and not earmarked for any specific
purpose.
Reserves are monies
deposited in an account to be used only for the
maintenance and preservation of our facilities. In other words, they must be
earmarked for a specific purpose, examples of
which are a new roof for the Anthem Center or the repainting or refurnishing of
a room in need of being modernized.
For years....there has been no
clear definition for surplus funds, but they DEFINITELY cannot be utilized as working capital, such as paying fines to the IRS or subsidizing
losses for a restaurant.
The
result...
...OPEN WARFARE amongst
board members between those who need to "keep an old system"
where a "slush fund" is important to bury their mistakes, and one lone wolf who is trying to convince the others that "surplus"
means GIVE IT BACK to the unit owners.
Nevada Statues under NRS 116
do not define how excess surplus funds should be calculated, and Director Jim Mayfield, seems to be the only one who wanted
that defined ...
...until...
... it was recently learned that two distinguished CPAs, the current
Vice Chairman and former
Chairman of the Sun City Anthem Finance
Committee...
...seem to be generally in agreement with Mr.
Mayfield.
...and for that...we highly commend him for
his determination in "doing the right thing" despite the apparent disdain from a
number of Board Members...
....complicated by the stubborn and conceited
attitude of the current Association Treasurer, Thomas
Nissen, a man who DOES NOT EVEN CARRY A CURRENT CPA
REGISTRATION.
Now...why would that be the
case?
You see, the "old
guard" knows that if you keep the surplus funds and
place them in a working capital account, you can pull them out when you "screw
up" something...and...avoid having to make it public when you do
!
Mr. Mayfield, on the
other hand, says..."wait a minute"....
...that excess should be
RETURNED TO YOU...and if "screw ups" take place, you
should admit to them, and be forced to make them public, by SAYING WE NEED MORE OF YOUR MONEY TO COVER THE BOOBOOS, rather
than burying the truth.
Seems to us that Mr. Mayfield is fighting a real
battle...he's demanding that ....
"if you don't
take it in, you can't spend it, because you don't have
it"
He's
become...the...
Gee, what's he making all
the waves about?
Oh yeah...it's called one
man's dying plea for...
Let's give you an example
as to how things work out here by comparing it to Social Security
funding.
Year after year, we have
been told that the Social Security funding is far below what it should be, that
it's going to go broke soon.
It is common
knowledge the only way it's been allowed to stumble through the years is increasing the social security base, increasing the normal retirement age, and increasing the contribution wage base percentage.
In 1970 you paid a total
of 4.2% of the first $7,800 of your earnings, but in 2016, the amount had
jumped to 6.2% of the first $118,500. Medicare taxes were paid in addition
jumping from .6% on the first $7,800 of earnings to 1.45% no matter how much you
earned.
Well,
there's another reason that it is going broke....DRAINING IT TO PAY for OTHER STUFF that has nothing to do with funding the benefits associated with Social
Security.
...and that's a good
example of what's taking place with your dues money.
We have been "robbing Peter to pay Paul" by allowing funds to be
improperly used as "working
capital".
What is "working
capital"?
Current assets minus current liabilities, and it measures how much in liquid assets
a company has available on hand to meet its immediate
obligations...
...and improperly placing funds in "working
capital" rather than refunding them to the unit owners, has allowed the creation
of a "slush fund" THAT BY LAW,
SHOULD NOT EXIST.
There
have been no dues increases because of two
things:
1. The current and past boards have COLLECTED TOO MUCH, and the overages have been stuck in
that "working capital" sock for an undetermined
purpose for a rainy day.
2. These overages have been ROBBED again and again to pay for such things as restaurant rent reductions, loans to
deadbeat owners, all to often, senseless legal
fees....
...and worst of
all...what appears to be a SUBSTANTIAL UNDERSTATEMENT IN THE
COST OF TRANSITION TO SELF-MANAGEMENT.
Now then....if there was NO SURPLUS...what
then?
Simply stated, you'd have to think twice before you spent the bucks, wouldn't
you?
Any of you remember an
old "Hi & Lois" cartoon....
... when Hi went to a Chinese laundry and didn't have his receipt ?
The owner looked at Hi
and said..
Well, in our estimation, these words should be stamped on the foreheads of each and every person who wants to call themselves a real leader and practice financial responsibility.
So...to you "leaders" our
attitude is simple...
If you need money, ASK US
for our approval.
In the
meantime...
GIVE THE SURPLIS BACK
TO US...
In case you
forgot...
..we're the ones who
GAVE IT TO YOU !
Got a comment?
What's your thought(s) on
surplus?
Keep it?
Give it
back?
Send it to us
at:
-
From Langs 3...to...Anthem Opinions
Give it back, its the law and its ours, not theirs to spend willy nilly!! -
I have spent some time looking at the ineptitude of the majority of the Board, and over time come to respect Mr. Mayfield more then before.
- How long can one turn a blind eye to basic corruption and robbery?
- The IRS has already caught the Board once and we (the homeowners) paid a hefty fine from the "surplus" — our money.
- Somebody will turn them in again eventually and then the Board won't have to worry about the surplus; as they will be giving the (your) money to the IRS again.
- Write the Board about it...?
- They don't listen.
If the board screws up and covers up wasted money in the amount of $85,724
IT’S ONLY
$1 per month per home in SCA.
If the boards has a slush fund of $428,640
IT’S ONLY
$5 per month per household…
That’s how the board thinks.
Give bonus to employees that you are about to terminate???
IT’S ONLY our money DICIDED by 12 and then decided by each household of 7,144…..
WE NEED NEW THINKING
NO DUES INCREASE IN ALL THESE YEARS PROVES THAT THE SLUSH FUND (SURPLUS) HAS BEEN WORKING FOR THE BOARD GIVEN THE NUMBER OF TIMES THEY HAVE USED IT TO COVER UP SO MANY POOR DECISIONS.
Of course, the IRS will be happy to determine what constitutes "Surplus"
Fool us once, shame on you.
Fool us twice, shame on us.