Wilmette Public Schools District 39 is dedicated to maintaining a reasonable fund balance sufficient to mitigate current and future financial risks and to ensure stable tax rates. This policy establishes goals and provides guidance concerning the desired level of year-end fund balance to be maintained by the District, as well as categories of reported fund balance.
Fund – For purposes of this policy a fund is defined as a fiscal and accounting entity with a self-balancing set of accounts that comprise its assets, liabilities, fund balance, revenues, and expenditures. The District maintains separate funds as required by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). The record of fund activity is maintained in the District’s financial accounting software, and is reported annually in the District’s annual financial report (AFR).
Governmental fund types used by the District include (1) the general fund, (2) special revenue funds, (3) debt service funds, and capital (4) projects funds. Student activity funds, maintained by the District, are fiduciary in nature and are not governed by this policy.
General Fund – The general fund is used to account for and report all financial resources not accounted for and reported in other funds.
Special Revenue Funds – Special revenue funds are used to account for, and report the proceeds of, specific revenue sources that are restricted or committed to expenditure for specified purposes other than debt service or capital projects. The term proceeds of specific revenue sources establish that one or more specific restricted or committed revenues should be the foundation for a special revenue fund. If the District no longer expects that a substantial portion of the inflows will derive from restricted or committed revenue sources, the District should discontinue reporting a special revenue fund, and instead report the fund’s remaining resources in the General Fund.
Debt Service Funds – Debt service funds are used to account for, and to report, financial resources that are restricted, committed, or assigned to expenditure for principal and interest. Debt service funds should be used to report resources if legally mandated.
Capital Projects Funds – Capital projects funds are used to account for and report financial resources that are restricted, committed, or assigned to expenditure for capital outlays, including the acquisition or construction of capital facilities and other capital assets.
Fund Balance – Fund balance is a measure of available financial resources. Fund balance is the difference between a fund’s assets and liabilities.
The categories and subcategories set forth by GASB are used for District general purpose external financial reporting in accordance with GAAP accounting principles. The District may use other, or additional designations, for internal accounting and special purpose reporting. Authority for use and transfer of District funds arises under State law; the GASB designations are used for descriptive reporting purposes only, and are not intended to express or imply limitation on that authority. Individual District funds maintained, as required by state law and ISBE regulations, may contain monies described under more than one GASB category or sub-category.
Adopted: December 12, 2011 Revised: November 12, 2018; September 23, 2024
Legal Reference: None cited