University of West Georgia The State of Georgia Public Finance Dilemma Instructions Instructions Students are to utilize the same local or state government | Course Hero

University of West Georgia The State of Georgia Public Finance Dilemma Instructions
Instructions
Students are to utilize the same local or state government from short papers #1 and #2( attached below ) to research a public finance dilemma in their chosen local or state government. Students should prepare an 8-10 page public finance recommendation addressed to the head of that government (i.e., mayor, commission chair, or governor) with the following components:

Executive Summary
Background: Organizational Structure, Economic Conditions/Outlook, and Fiscal Policies, major revenue sources and major expenditures.
Problem Statement: Identification of high cost/major expenditure
Analysis of Expenditure:

What are expenditures? What programs are covered under this expenditure?
What is public good and choice? How does this expenditure reflect both?
How does political equilibrium affect public finance? What is the political equilibrium of your chosen expenditure?
What is cost-benefit analysis? What are the findings of a cost-benefit of your expenditure’s programs?
What are different revenue strategies? What taxation strategies are used to fund your expenditure’s programs?

Recommendations:

Is the current funding level appropriate for this public good?
What changes should be made to the revenue streams and expenditure level?
How will these changes impact the local or state government’s service to constituents?

See Executive Summary Guidelines for expectations. When you are discussing the above areas, you must provide context for each category to ensure understanding about the issue (using historical information, data, current status, options for moving forward and explaining the challenges and opportunities/benefits for each option). Just because you are writing the summary to an executive, it does not mean the executive is fully aware of all the details as you are. So … fully explain.
When you choose your level of government, you can go to that government’s website and seek information regarding the structure, budget, goals, strategic plan, and other information that will benefit this assignment. For example, if a student chooses Lee County, GA. You can go to Lee County’s government website and see some of this information. The information may not be on one or two webpages, so you should be diligent and seek this information out.
Ensure to use in-text citations and have a reference page.
There is no need for a title page or abstract. See the APA Style Guide if necessary. MEMORANDUM
To: Professor
From: Indya Robinson
Date: June 10, 2020
Re: Small Business Relaunch Program
————————————————————————————————————————–The purpose of this memo to describe the Lee County’s Small Business Relaunch Program & the
associated challenges.
Organizational Structure
Lee County Government has a Board of County Commissioners. They usually hold meetings on
every 1st and 3rd Mondays of every month. (leecountync.gov, Commissioners). Below are the
associated details:
MISSION
“Through vision and leadership, setting the standard for professional local government.”
MOTTO
“Committed Today for a Better Tomorrow”
CORE VALUES
?
We Value Our Citizens, Community, Family
?
We Value Our Business and Industry
?
We Value Our Competent, knowledgeable, and courteous employees
?
We Value Our Cost effective and quality service
?
We Value Our Responsive and cooperative departments
Below is the Organizational Chart (leegov.com, High-Level Lee County Organization Chart) giving the
heads of each department:
Profile & Economic Conditions
The Small Business Relaunch Program has been launched for only the eligible business affected
under the ‘Safer At Home Act’. ‘Safer At Home Act’ was introduced during the coronovirus
pandemic due contain the spread of the infection from the disease. It was Level 2 which was
implemented after Level 1 of ‘Stay at Home’. In this act people were continued to be
encouraged to stay at their homes. Important businesses and workplaces were opened, and
non-critical were opened with restrictions. Wearing face masks, maintaining hygiene, were
some of the important instructions passed. Connecting with other people was recommended to
be done through virtual and distant modes. Hence all the businesses impacted by this Act, were
planned to be covered under the Small Business Relaunch Program.
Lee County has a population of 757, 610 (leecountybusiness.com, data-2), it supports 304,417
households with and estimated income of $55,757 for any medium family. The income
distribution is such that around 20% of the population earns between $50,000 to $75,000
which amounts the maximum percentage of the population; only around 10% fall in the rich
class with 4.6% earning between $150,000 and %199,999 & 5.4% earning above $200,000.
Around 26% of the population falls between a big scale of earning between $75,000 and
$149,999. 9.3% of the population earns below $15,000 per annum. 8.3% earns in the range of
$15,000 – $24,999; 11% between $25,000 and $34,999. The final 15% earns between $35,000
and $49,999.
The employment rate in the county has gone up by 2.7%, making the unemployment rate 2.8%.
There are 338,300 workers in Lee County and 33,024 businesses. The economy of the county
stands at position 7 as per the National State Economy Rating (CNBC, 2019). Below is the
division of workforce per industry:
Wholesale Trade: 7,956
Manufacturing; 8,047
Arts, Entertainment & Recreation: 9,814
Finance & Insurance: 9,220
Administrative & Waste Services: 10,890
Professional & Technical Services: 15,405
Construction: 24,447
Health Care & Social Assistance: 34,081
Fiscal Policies
$5,000 fund has been allocated as part of the Relaunch Program. This could be increased
considering the impact the pandemic had on economy, and also if the Debt obligations of the
Lee County’s Government is reduced. (leeflcares.com, transparency). A total of 2,127
applications have been received as part of this program. $3,660,000 funds have been approved
by the Government as a support to these applicants. Hundreds of applications are received
daily.
Pete Winton is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and the Assistant County Manager of Lee
County. The budget information to the Board of Country Commissioners (BOCC) is provided by
the Office of Management & Budget (OMB). The OMB works in association with the fiscal
officers. The other jobs of OMB include (leegov.com, budget):
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Provide forecasts of revenues, expenses, and reserves
Develop the annual operating and capital budgets
Budget Performance is tracked during the year
Evaluate operational and fiscal performance
Make debt financing recommendations and monitor the county’s credit
Assess and oversee the county’s risk management and asset protection
Link the county’s fiscal policies to its strategic plan
Budget Calendar
PFB the budget calendar of Lee County for the ongoing year 2020-21. (leecountync.gov, 202021 Budget Calendar)
Goals and
Objectives
This program intends to help in relaunch of small business programs that have been impacted
through the Governor’s ‘Safer at Home Act’. (leeflcares.com, Small Business Relaunch Program).
Such businesses if having 25 or less employees; and if the business owner is based in Lee
County are then only eligible for this fund. These funds will cover only the shutting down or
closing of the businesses deemed non-essential under the ‘Safer At Home Act; and which are
not covered by insurance or any other federal program.
Trends and Forecasts
The funds for the Small Business Relaunch Program are available through the Federal
Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. It is the LeeCARES Grant for the
small businesses in Lee County. $25 million emergency fund has been identified by the Lee
County for the financial support under this program. As per the current trend (leeflcares.com,
transparency), 2,127 applications have been received and
$3,660,000 funds approved for these applications. The trend
of daily calls in the month of June. The trend shows a
downward curve, giving a positive picture of the number of
applicants being fulfilled. However, the support under this
program will have to continue for a while. A recommendation
would be to carry out a survey among households as well, to
spread the message of the program, as not necessarily the
entire population is aware of the government programs.
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References
Commissioners, Board of Commissioners, Elected to Serve the Citizens of Lee County,
https://leecountync.gov/Commissioners
Small Business Relaunch Program, https://leeflcares.com/
Lee County Organizational Chart, High-Level Lee County Organizational Chart,
https://www.leegov.com/hr/Documents/Org%20Charts/High%20Level%20Org%20Chart.pdf
Lee County Business Data, Lee County Economic Development
https://leecountybusiness.com/data-2
Lee County Office of Management and Budget, https://www.leegov.com/budget
Lee County, LeeCARES, Transparency Dashboard, https://leeflcares.com/transparency
Lee County Fiscal Year 2020-21, Budget Procedure Calendar,
https://leecountync.gov/Portals/0/Content/Departments/uploads/202021%20budget%20calendar.pdf
Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
Memo
To: The Honorable Brian Porter Kemp, Governor of Georgia
From: Indya Robinson
Date: 01/07/2020
Re: Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
This memo analyzes the fiscal objectives, funds, expenditure, and budgets over the last three
years for Georgia State.
Types of Funds
Georgia State is ranked as the 8th most populous state in the United States of America. Its 2019
estimated population was 10,617,423 as per the United States Census Bureau. Georgia State has
different revenue; personal and corporate income taxes are the significant sources of revenue for
the state. These are taxes from the citizens’ gross incomes, which are deducted as per the
statutory laws.
Secondly, there are gas and vehicle taxes whereby, an excise tax is imposed on the retail price
per gallon of fuel. This ranges from gasoline to special fuel. On the other hand, motor vehicle
title tax, referred to as Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT), is charged at the rate of 6.6% of the
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Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
vehicle’s market value. This is paid once when the car is titled; it is also paid when there is a
transfer of ownership of the car or when a new resident registers a vehicle for the first time in
Georgia.
A corporate income tax is also charged on corporates operating in Georgia, this is charged at the
rate of 5.75% on the taxable net income of the corporation. There even does exist a net worth
tax, paid by the corporates operating in Georgia. The amount payable is based on the net worth
of the corporate. This is not subject to corporates with a net worth of less than $100000.
Georgia State does also benefits from the Master Settlement Agreement, which sees the four
largest cigarette manufacturers pay the state annually since 19998. On top of this, there is the
tobacco tax whereby 37 cents are charged per a pack of 20 cigarettes, 23% of the wholesaler’s
cost is charged for cigars, and 10% of wholesaler’s price charged for smokeless tobacco.
Wholesalers collect taxes on alcoholic beverages from retailers on delivery and later on submit
the taxes to the Department of Revenue for Georgia State. The rates of taxes on alcohol vary
from distilled spirits to malt beverages.
Georgia has a Nursing Home Provider Fee Act. It states that registered and licensed nursing
homes in Georgia pay a fee, dependent on the number of days of service provided to a patient.
This, though, does not apply to nursing homes owned by the federal government. The fee does
serve as another source of funding for the state of Georgia.
Other sources of funds include: Hospital Provider fees, Insurance Premium Tax, Motor Vehicle
License Fee, Other Transportation fees, Fireworks Excise tax, State Hotel-Motel fee, and Film
tax.
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Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
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Overview of General Fund Budget over three years
Over the last three fiscal years, the state has witnessed a rise in the population, which leads to
increased revenue, calling for much expenditure on the government’s side.
In the fiscal year 2018, the governor proposed a budget of $25 billion, which ended up as the
actual budget for the year. A large chunk of the funding was from the general funding, which
included fuel purchases, corporate and personal income, and consumer transactions. The revenue
from the general funds was channeled towards health care, K-12 and post-secondary education,
transportation, public safety, debt service, and department of human services. Revenue from tax
on motor vehicle fuel has to be spent on bridges and roads as per Georgia’s constitution. Thus,
this was adhered to. K-12 and higher education received the lion’s share of the budget as health
care and transportation followed.
In 2019, Governor Nathan Deal proposed a $26 billion budget, which was $1 billion more than
that of the previous year. This rise was to account for the teacher retirement system, Medicaid
growth, k-12 enrollment, university enrollment, and other investments. State lawmakers had
changes on the proposed bill, and later the actual budget for the 2019 fiscal year was $26.2
billion. This saw a revenue increase of $1.2 billion from the previous year. In this year, $167
million more was added to the K-12 plan, ensuring the state’s formula was fully funded. $20.5
million was channeled towards the mental health of children. The budget clearly stated the
state’s priorities and how much revenue was to be collected in that fiscal year. During the 2019
fiscal year, much of the revenue was from personal income taxes.
Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
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In the 2020 fiscal year, a budget proposal of $27.5 billion was made by you, proving an increase
of $1.3 billion from the prior fiscal year, proposing a $3000 pay increase for the 115000 certified
teachers in Georgia. There also was a 2% merit pay increase to all state employees. The budget
targeted education, transportation, behavioral health, higher education, and healthcare. The
actual budget was $27.4 billion, with a notable pulling out of $100 million from the Revenue
Shortfall Reserve to be used in addressing COVID-19. There also was an addition of $1.5
million, making a total of $3 million to be used for Georgia regional airport.
From these, a balance is established in the budgets as the revenue collected matches the
expenditure. The expenditure also brings about more opportunities in the forthcoming years, for
instance, with the airport project, there shall be more revenue collection from it in the future.
To be noted is that the budgets are in line with the priorities of the state, education receiving top
priority, followed closely by health care. There also have been efforts to reduce expenditure as
per the 2020 fiscal year budget proposal. This is a good sign of an efficiently run economy.
Moving forward, there should be a means to ensure an increase in revenue and ensure
expenditure is well prioritized. This should be on issues impacting the citizens directly, such as
education and health care.
Policy Memo on Expenditure and Revenue
References
Buschman, B., & Reeves, M. (2017). A Briefing on Georgia’s Budget: The Big Picture.
Bourdeaux, C. (2015). A Briefing on Georgia’s Budget: The Big Picture.
Bahl, R. W., & Martinez-Vazquez, J. (2008). The determinants of revenue performance.
Lauth, T. P., & Robbins, M. D. (2002). The Georgia lottery and state appropriations for
education: Substitution or additional funding?. Public Budgeting & Finance, 22(3), 89-100.
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