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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCS 02-10 eitq REPORT TO EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE PICKERING ` Report Number: CS 02-10 Date: February 8, 2010 22 From: Gillis A. Paterson Director, Corporate Services & Treasurer Subject: City Policy - Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Recommendation: 1. That Report CS 02-10 of the Director, Corporate Services & Treasurer be received; 2. That the Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Policy, attached to this report, be approved; and, 3. That the appropriate officials of the City of Pickering be authorized to take the necessary action to give effect hereto. Executive Summary: Effective with fiscal years starting January 1, 2009, the Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) requires municipal government to account and report on their tangible capital assets. These assets were previously expensed at the time of acquisition or construction. Tangible capital assets are defined as non financial assets having physical substance that are held for use by the municipality and have a useful life beyond one year. Examples of such assets are vehicles, equipment, buildings, land, roads, bridges and sidewalks. This policy prescribes the accounting treatment for the City's tangible capital assets to ensure compliance with PSAB standard PS 3150. Financial Implications: While there are no immediate direct identifiable financial implications associated with the adoption of this report and the attached policy, in the long-term it will impact the City's business practices regarding the maintenance of its capital asset infrastructure. Starting with 2009, the annual Financial Statements of the City.will change significantly. These changes will also lead to changes in the annual budgets. Furthermore, the information collected and presented in these documents will prove to be of great assistance in the management of the City's assets, including eventual replacement. Financial information will now be available on all the City's tangible capital assets over their useful life. This is a major change for all Ontario municipalities. Report CS 02-10 February 8, 2010 Subject: City Policy - Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 2 23 Sustainability Implications: Passing the attached report with the corresponding policy will assist the City to effectively manage its capital infrastructure that in turn will maintain its financial sustainability objectives. Background: The Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) which establishes accounting standards for government bodies approved standard PS 3150 which requires municipal governments to account and report tangible capital assets starting January 1, 2009. The new requirements represent a significant change in the reporting of capital assets and will have a significant impact on the financial statements and budgets of all municipalities. Under PS 3150, municipalities are required to capitalize their tangible capital assets in their financial statements. At the same time, a percentage of the asset's cost will be expensed each year of its useful life and this expense will be charged against annual results. Previously, assets were simply expensed in the year of acquisition or construction. The new reporting requirements apply to existing and newly acquired assets that have been purchased, contributed, donated and constructed. During the course of 2008 and 2009, City staff worked diligently to collect the required asset information for assets already owned by the City to meet the January 1, 2009 implementation date. The attached Policy was developed to prescribe the accounting treatment for the City's tangible capital assets to ensure continued compliance with PSAB standard PS 3150. Please note that Section 12 of the attached Policy refers to City Procedures regarding Tangible Capital Assets. These procedures are currently being developed and will not require Council approval. Attachments: 1. City Policy - Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Report CS 02-10 February 8, 2010 Subject: City Policy - Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 3 24 Prepared By: Prepared By: i J e S. Robertson ristine Senior v enior Financial Analyst Manager, Accounting Services Approved / Endorsed By: Gillis A. Paterson Director, Corporate Services & Treasurer GAP:jsr Copy: Chief Administrative Officer Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City Council Tho as J. inn, RDMR, III Chief Administrative Officer city 2 5 ATTACHMENT#..TO REPORT#LE .W - I D CITY POLICY M~ PICKERING Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Policy Number: FIN 050 Reference: Date Originated: Date Revised: Public Sector Accounting Board PS 3150 January 2010 Approval: Point of Contact: Senior Financial Analyst, Corporate Services Policy Objective The purpose of this policy is to prescribe the accounting treatment for tangible capital. assets in accordance with Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) PS 3150 in order for the Corporation of the City of Pickering (the "City") to provide financial information about the investment in property, infrastructure, and equipment and the changes in such investment. In addition, this will allow the City to maintain accountability and ensure efficient and effective use of capital assets, as well as make appropriate decisions in planning for capital asset replacement needs. The principle issues in accounting for tangible capital assets are the recognition of the assets, the determination of their carrying costs, amortization charges and the recognition of any related write-downs. Scope This policy applies to all City departments, boards and agencies and other organizations falling within the reporting entity of the City. Index 01 Definitions 02' Categories 03 Opening Balances 04 Capitalization 05 Valuation 26 06 Single Asset, Pooling, Component or Segment Approach 07 Amortization 08 Betterments 09 Assets Under Construction 10 Disposals 11 Write-down for Impairment 12 Responsibilities 13 Procedures 01 Definitions 01.01 Amortization is the accounting process of allocating the cost less the residual value of a tangible capital asset to the fiscal years as an expense over its useful life in a rational and systematic manner appropriate to its nature and~use. Amortization expense is an important part of the cost associated with providing local government services, regardless of how the acquisition of tangible capital assets is funded. Depreciation accounting is another commonly used term to describe the amortization of tangible capital assets. 01.02 Assets Under Construction are assets purchased, constructed or developed and not yet in service. Once completed and in service, these assets will be recorded as an asset in their proper category and will be amortized over their useful life. 01.03 Betterments are subsequent expenditures on tangible capital assets that: • increase previously assessed physical output or service capacity; • lower associated operating costs; • extend the useful life of the asset; or • improve the quality of the output. i Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 2 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 27 Amounts are capitalized in accordance with the thresholds provided in Section 04. Any other expenditure would be considered a repair or maintenance and expensed in the period. 01.04 Capital lease is a lease with contractual terms that transfer substantially all the benefits and risks inherent in ownership of the asset to the City. For substantially all of the benefits and risks of ownership to be transferred to the lessee, one or more of the following conditions must be met: a) there is reasonable assurance that the City will, obtain ownership of the leased property by the end of the lease term; b) the lease term is of such duration that the City will receive substantially all of the economic benefits expected to be derived from the use of the leased property over its life span; or c) the lessor would be assured of recovering the investment in the leased property and of earning a return on the investment as a result of the lease agreement. Account for a capital lease as acquiring a capital asset and incurring a liability. Account for a lease as an operating lease when the net present value of the future minimum lease payments or fair value, whichever is less, is less than $10,000. 01.05 Carrying costs are costs directly attributable to an asset's acquisition,. construction or development activity where, due to the nature of the asset, preparing the asset for intended use is over an extended period of time. Typical carrying costs could include: • technical and administrative work prior to commencement of and during construction; • overhead charges directly attributable to construction or development; and • interest (see Section 05.04). 01.06 Component is a part of an asset with a cost that is significant in relation to the total cost of that asset. Component accounting recognizes that each part might have a different useful life. This requires separate accounting for each component that has a different useful life than the asset as a whole. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 3 of 15, Policy Number: FIN 050 I 28 01.07 Cost is the gross amount of consideration given up to acquire, construct, develop or better a tangible capital asset, and includes all costs directly attributable to acquisition, construction, development or betterment of the tangible capital asset, including installing the asset at the location and in the condition necessary for its intended use. The cost of a contributed tangible capital asset, including a tangible capital asset in lieu of a developer charge, is considered to be equal to its fair value at the date of contribution. Capital grants are not netted against the cost of tangible capital assets - both purchased and contributed. The cost of a leased tangible capital asset is determined in accordance with Public Sector Guideline PSG-2, Leased Tangible Capital Assets in the PSAB Handbook. 01.08 Deemed disposition is when the asset is assumed or deemed to have been disposed of in the last year of its estimated useful life. At the deemed disposition date, the full cost of the addition and the related accumulated amortization is removed from the accounting records. Deemed disposition is the method used to remove pooled assets from the accounting system. 01.09 Fair value is the amount of consideration that would be agreed upon in an arm's length transaction between knowledgeable, willing parties who are under no compulsion to act. 01.10 Moveable property is property that may be moved from place to place. Examples of moveable property for purposes of tangible capital assets are Vehicles and Machinery & Equipment. 01.11 Net book value of a tangible capital asset is its cost, less both accumulated amortization and the amount of any write-downs. 01.12 Pooled Assets are assets that are similar or identical in nature and have a unit value below the capitalization threshold but have a material value as a group - normally recorded as a single asset with one combined value. Although recorded in the financial systems as a single asset, each unit may be recorded in the asset sub-ledger for monitoring and control of its use and maintenance. Examples could include personal computers, furniture and fixtures, small moveable equipment, etc. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 4 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 .29 01.13 Replacement cost is the cost to acquire an asset having equivalent service potential to that of the asset being replaced. 01.14 Reproduction cost is the cost of reproducing an asset in substantially identical form and does not take into account changes in technology or construction methods. 01.15 Residual value is the estimated net realizable value of a tangible capital asset at the end of its useful life. 01.16 Service potential is the output or service capacity of a tangible capital asset, and is normally determined by reference to attributes such as. physical output capacity, quality of output, associated operating costs, and useful life. 01.17 Straight-line amortization allocates the cost less estimated residual value of a capital asset equally over each year of its estimated useful life. 01.18 Tangible capital assets are non-financial assets having physical substance that: (i) are held for use in the production or supply of goods and services, for rental to others, for administrative purposes or for the development, construction, maintenance or repair of other tangible capital assets; (ii) have useful economic lives extending beyond a fiscal year; (iii) are to be used on a continuing basis; and (iv) are not for sale in the ordinary course of operations. Tangible capital assets include assets that are donated, contributed, leased (e.g. capital lease) and construction-in-progress. Tangible capital assets do not include such things as: • intangibles (e.g. Goodwill, copyrights, trademarks); • assets acquired by Right, such as purchased computer software; and • heritage assets. 01.19 Threshold is the minimum value which must be met for the capitalization of a tangible capital asset. 01.20 Useful life is the estimate of either the period over which the City expects to use a tangible capital asset, or the service potential of the tangible Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 5 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 30 capital asset. The life of a tangible capital asset may extend beyond its Y useful life. The life of a tangible capital asset, other than land, is finite, and is normally the shortest of the physical, technological, commercial or legal life. I 02 Categories A category of assets is a grouping of assets of similar nature or function in the City's operations. The following list of categories shall be used: A Land B Buildings C Machinery & Equipment D Vehicles E Infrastructure - Roads F Infrastructure - Storm Sewers G Infrastructure - Sidewalks H Information Technology Hardware Infrastructure - Parks J Library Collection Materials K Furniture & Fixtures L Assets Under Construction 03 Opening Balances Capitalization for opening balances as of December 31, 2007 is set at a threshold of $5,000 for individual assets and pooled assets. No threshold was used on the opening balances for Land, Buildings and Roads and these categories therefore include 100% of assets identified. Pooled assets in. the opening balances include Streetlights, Computer Equipment, Park Infrastructure, Library Materials and Furniture & Fixtures. The majority of Furniture & Fixtures were purchased at the time of facility construction and would be completely depreciated based on their useful life. Therefore, the majority were deemed to have been disposed. of and have been excluded from the opening balances. Although PS3150 requires tangible capital assets to be recorded at historical cost, the transitional provisions allow for the fact that historical cost accounting records may not exist for all assets. PS3150 indicates that a government entity should apply a consistent method of estimating the cost of tangible capital assets for which it does not have historical records; it does not provide guidance on what. other measurement bases should be used. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 6 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 31 Where the City did not have historical accounting records, the following methods were used: Current Reproduction/Replacement: Determining current reproduction/replacement cost and deflating it back to the date of the asset's acquisition using an appropriate deflation index. Appraisal: Wherever necessary, the City contracted the services of an accredited appraisal company to provided current market values discounted back to the date of acquisition using an appropriate deflation index. To account for taxes properly, the cost for each asset had the estimated applicable PST and/or GST added to determine the final opening balance. 04 Capitalization Tangible capital assets and any betterments should be capitalized and amortized according to the following thresholds and useful lives: Asset Category Threshold Useful Life - Years* Land Always Capitalize Indefinite Buildings $100,000 15 - 45 Machinery & Equipment $5,000 various Vehicles $15,000 5-15 Infrastructure - Roads $100,000 10-50 Infrastructure - Storm Sewers $50,000 25 - 100 Infrastructure - Sidewalks $50,000 20 - 40 Information Technology $5,000 or pooled - see 4-8 Hardware threshold below Infrastructure - Parks $5,000 or pooled - see 10-40 threshold below Library Collection Materials Pooled - see threshold 4-7 below Furniture & Fixtures $5,000 or pooled - see various threshold below Assets Under Construction Always Capitalize n/a Pooled Assets $20,000 n/a Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 7 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 32 *Specific useful lives are provided in separate Tangible Capital Assets City Procedure. 05 Valuation Tangible capital assets should be recorded at cost plus all related charges necessary to place the asset in its intended location and condition for use. These direct costs will be added as part of the original cost of the asset and will be amortized over the useful life of the associated asset. 05.01 Purchased Assets Cost is the gross amount of consideration paid to acquire the asset. It includes all non-refundable taxes and duties, freight and delivery charges, installation and site preparation costs and other directly related costs. The cost is net of any discounts or rebates. The cost excludes the value of any asset traded in. Cost of land includes purchase price plus legal fees, land registration fees, transfer taxes, survey soil tests and any other directly related costs. Costs would include any costs to make the land suitable for intended use, such as pollution mitigation, demolition and site improvements that become part of the land. When two or more assets are acquired for a single purchase price, it is necessary to allocate the purchase price to the various assets acquired. Allocation should be based on the fair value of each asset at the time of acquisition or some other reasonable basis if fair value is not readily determinable. 05.02 Acquired, Constructed or Developed Assets Cost includes all costs directly attributable (e.g., construction, architectural and other professional fees) to the acquisition, construction or development of the asset. Carrying costs such as internal design, inspection, administrative and other similar costs may be capitalized. Capitalization of general administrative overheads such as rent, utilities, and insurance are not allowed. Capitalization of carrying costs ceases when no construction or development is taking place or when the tangible capital asset is ready for use. 05.03 Donated or Contributed Assets The cost of donated or contributed assets that meet the criteria for recognition is equal to the fair value at the date of construction or Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 8 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 33 contribution. Fair value may be determined using market or appraisal values. Cost maybe determined by an estimate of. replacement cost. Any related costs should also be capitalized. 05.04 Capitalization of Interest Costs Borrowing costs incurred when the acquisition, construction or production of an asset takes a substantial period of time to get ready for its intended use may be capitalized as part of the cost of that asset. Capitalization of interest costs should commence when expenditures are being incurred, borrowing costs are being incurred and activities that are necessary to prepare the asset for its intended use are in progress. Capitalization should be suspended during periods in which active development is interrupted. Capitalization should cease when substantially all (90%) of the activities necessary to prepare the asset for its intended use are complete. If only minor modifications are outstanding, this indicates that substantially all of the activities are complete. 06 Single Asset, Pooling, Component or Segment Approach Tangible capital assets may be accounted for using the single asset, pooling, component and/or segment approaches. The approach used will be determined by the usefulness of the information versus the cost of collecting and maintaining information at that level. The approach taken does not have to be consistent across all categories of assets. Different approaches may be taken for each category. 06.01 Single Asset Approach The single asset approach is used when it is not possible to break down the assets into component parts and the value of the asset meets the threshold minimums outlined in Section 04. If a single asset approach is used, the replacement of individual parts will not increase the service potential of the asset as a whole and are recorded as an expense. 06.02 Pooling Approach Assets that are similar or identical in nature and have an individual value below the capitalization threshold but have a material value as a group may be recorded as a single asset with one combined value. Examples of pooled assets are computers and library materials. The capitalization threshold for pooled assets is $20,000. Thus, any grouping of assets must exceed this level to be considered an asset for PS 3150 purposes. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 9 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 34 06.03 Component Approach Factors to consider when determining whether to use a component approach include: a) major components have significantly different useful lives and consumption patterns in relation to the tangible capital asset as a whole; and b) value of components in relation to the value of the tangible capital asset as a whole. City infrastructure should use the component approach, where appropriate. Major components can be comprised of assets that have similar characteristics and estimated useful lives or consumption rates. 06.04 Segment Approach Linear assets (complex network systems such as roads, sidewalks and stormwater systems) are usually defined in terms of details such as . length, unit of measure and geographic reference (e.g., start and end points). For linear assets, it may be appropriate to break down assets into corresponding segments. For example, when work is performed at a specific point in a linear asset - such as replacing a portion of a roadway - the cost and work involved is attributed to that portion of the asset rather than the entire asset. 06.05 Approach Summary The component and segment approaches can make the accounting and reporting of assets easier. It allows more accurate tracking of an asset by age, type, use and other attributes used in estimating an asset's useful life. It also allows for more accurate tracking of betterments and maintenance. For example, if a segment of sidewalk is replaced, or a component of a building is replaced, the costs of the replacement can be capitalized and amortized over its useful life and the old segment/component written off. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 10 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 35 Asset classes will be evaluated using the following approaches: Asset Class Approach Components Land Segment All buildings over 5000sq ft: Structure Buildings Component Electrical & Mechanical Roof Cover Interior Finishes Land Improvements Machinery & Equipment Single Asset Vehicles Single Asset Segment/ Roads - Base/Surface Infrastructure - Roads Component/ Bridges - Deck/Structure Pooled IPS and Traffic Signals - Controller/Infrastructure Infrastructure - Storm Segment Sewers Infrastructure - Segment Sidewalks Information Technology Single Asset Hardware /Pooled Infrastructure - Parks Single Asset /Pooled Library Collection Pooled Materials Furniture & Fixtures Single Asset /Pooled Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 11 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 3E 07 Amortization The cost, less any residual value, of a tangible capital asset with a limited life should be amortized over its useful life in a rational and systematic manner appropriate to its nature and use. The amortization method and estimate of useful life of the remaining unamortized portion should be reviewed on a regular basis and revised when the appropriateness of a change can be clearly demonstrated. Residual Value will be deemed to be nil for all assets for purposes of amortization. Useful life is normally the shortest of the asset's physical, technological, commercial or legal life. The City uses a straight-line method for calculating the annual amortization. A summary view of the estimated useful lives of assets is included in attached in Section 04. Please note that wherever a category contains many different types of assets with many different useful lives, in which no clear sub-categories stand out, the estimated useful life has been listed as `various' to reflect the vast pool of assets and their useful lives. City departments, boards and agencies and other organizations are responsible for establishing and utilizing an appropriate estimated useful life for assets acquired. The `half year rule' will apply to the City. Under the half year rule, six months of amortization is recorded for tangible capital assets acquired during a fiscal year and in the year of disposal. 08 Betterments When valuing the assets, the City must also consider if there have been any betterments since the asset was originally acquired or constructed. Costs of betterments are considered to be part of the cost of a tangible capital asset and would be added to the cost of the related asset. A betterment is a cost incurred to enhance the service potential of a tangible capital asset. In general, service potential may be enhanced when there is an increase in the previously assessed physical output or service, capacity, where associated operating costs are lowered, where the useful life of the property is extended, or the quality of the output is improved. For example, expenditures incurred to resurface a road which increases the useful life would be accounted for as a betterment. However, asphalt patching which is a temporary fix and does not increase the overall useful life of the road would be accounted for as repairs and maintenance. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 12 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 J 37 When recording a betterment, the cost of the betterment should not simply be added to the original cost of the asset. In some cases, a partial disposal of the existing asset that was improved occurs. For example, if the exterior of a building is replaced that results in increasing the useful life of the building, the cost of the replaced exterior should be removed from the cost of the building and the new exterior should be added to the cost. The accumulated depreciation related to the old exterior should also be removed. Betterments that meet the thresholds in Section 04 will be capitalized by the City. 09 Assets Under Construction Tangible capital assets purchased, constructed or developed by the City are charged to Assets Under Construction until they are put into use. The cost of a constructed asset includes direct construction or development costs (such as materials and labour), and overhead costs directly attributable to the construction or development activity. Assets under construction also include those assets that have. been acquired but require additional work to get the assets ready for use.. Capitalization of costs cease when a tangible capital asset is ready for use. Determining when a tangible capital asset, or a portion thereof, is ready for productive use requires consideration of the circumstances in which it is to be operated. Normally it would be predetermined by reference to factors such as productive capacity, occupancy level, or the passage of time. 10 Disposals Disposals of tangible capital assets that are moveable property are the responsibility of the Manager, Supply & Services as per the Purchasing Policy. Directors should notify the Manager when assets become surplus to operations. When other constructed tangible capital assets are taken out of service, destroyed or replaced due to obsolescence, scrapping or dismantling, the Director must notify Corporate Services of the asset and effective date of disposal. An asset that has been disposed of will be removed from the asset inventory records on disposal or when the asset is permanently withdrawn from use and no future economic benefit or service potential is expected from the asset. The gain or loss arising from the retirement or disposal of an asset should be recognized. The gain or loss is determined as the difference between the actual or estimated net disposal proceeds and the net book value of the asset. The Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 13 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 38 resulting gain or loss will be accounted for as revenue or expense in the Statement of Operations. 11 Write-down for Impairment A write-down is required when an asset has become impaired (that is, the value of future economic value of the asset is less than the book value). When this occurs, the costs should be reduced to reflect the decline in the asset value. A write-down is used to reflect a partial impairment in the value of the asset. A write-off is used to reflect 100% impairment of the value of an asset. Capital assets are written-off in instances where they are destroyed, stolen, lost or obsolete. The write-off of a tangible capital asset requires the approval of the Director, Corporate Services & Treasurer. Any abandoned or indefinitely postponed projects must be written-down to their net realizable value and charged to the period in which the abandonment or indefinite postponement occurs. When the reduction in the value of the asset can be objectively estimated and it is expected to be permanent, the tangible capital asset must be written-down. An asset write-down cannot be reversed. An asset is never written-up except on initial capitalization or as the result of a betterment. Conditions that may indicate a need to revise remaining estimated useful life and/or write-down of the value of a tangible capital asset include: • A change in manner or extent to which the tangible capital asset is used; • Removal of the tangible capital asset from service for an extended period of time; • Physical damage; • Significant technological developments; • A change in the demand for the services provided through use of the tangible capital asset; and • A change in the law or environment affecting the period of time over which the tangible capital asset can be used. 12 Responsibilities The Treasurer or designate, in conjunction with the Senior Financial Analyst (PSAB) and senior Finance management staff are responsible for the application, implementation and interpretation of this policy. Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 14 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050 39 Each Director., Division Head or other staff person shall provide the information and assistance required to maintain.a proper asset inventory that in turn meets reporting requirements. 13 Procedures See separate City Procedure for detailed procedures considering Tangible Capital Assets. i Policy Title: Accounting for Tangible Capital Assets Page 15 of 15 Policy Number: FIN 050