2022 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report

The budget serves as the foundation for the City’s financial planning and control. Annually, the City Manager presents a proposed budget to Council for review as well as to the citizens of Greensboro for questions and/or concerns. North Carolina General Statutes require all governmental units to adopt a balanced budget by July 1 of each year for all funds for which a budget is required. Activities of the General Fund, Special Revenue Funds (except for Grant Project Funds), Debt Service Fund, and Proprietary Funds are included in the annual appropriated budget. Project-length financial plans are adopted for Grant and Capital Projects Funds. The City Manager may make transfers of appropriations within funds and department heads may make transfers of appropriations within a department. Transfers of appropriations between funds, however, require approval by the City Council. Budget to-actual comparisons are provided in this report for each individual governmental fund for which an appropriated annual budget has been adopted. Budgetary control is facilitated by the use of a personnel/payroll data system that requires every position, including applicable fringe benefits, be budgeted. In addition, the North Carolina General Statutes require an encumbrance system and a finance officer’s “preaudit” certification that budgeted funds are available prior to the placement of all purchase orders, contracts and electronic payments. Outstanding purchase orders and contracts are reported as a restriction of fund balance at June 30, 2022 in the category “Stabilization by State Statute.” The appropriated budget is prepared by fund, function (e.g., public safety), and department (e.g., police). A budgetary comparison for the General Fund is presented in Exhibit A-7 as part of the Basic Financial Statements. Detailed budget to actual comparisons for other funds with annual and project-length budgets are presented in this report beginning with the “Special Revenue Funds” section.

COUNCIL BUDGET PRIORITIES Four strategic goals are the primary focus of funding within the City’s budget:

• Economic Development and Job Creation - The City’s approach to economic development focuses on creating an environment that promotes job creation, facilitates private business expansion, and utilizes community development grants, bonds and other resources to advance economic and infrastructure development. PLAN IT GSO is the City’s Comprehensive Plan and guiding document that articulates the vision, goals, growth policy and action plans for Greensboro through 2025. In June 2020, Greensboro City Council adopted the updated plan, now called GSO2040 . As part of this plan, the City completed over 150 public events that included dozens of public engagement initiatives ranging from workshops, pop-ups at public events, focus groups and on-line discussions netting over 6,000 individual contributions of input on

the long-term vision and goals for the next twenty years. The Minority-owned and Women-owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) program is a critical element of the City’s economic development initiatives. In February 2019, City Council adopted enhancements to the Greensboro Code of Ordinances and the MWBE Program Plan intended to increase utilization of minority and women owned businesses in City contracting. MWBE participation continues to show improvement in contract areas, and focus continues on improving participation for all areas of city business. In 2021, the City achieved MWBE utilization of 43.9% in construction services and 20.4% in

professional services. To facilitate economic growth in our city, especially among minority and women businesses, the FY 2022-23 budget includes over $878,000 and 8.75 FTEs in support of our MWBE program, an increase of 2.75 positions and almost $270,000. In an effort to make the program more effective, the budget includes the creation of a General Services Department to realign the MWBE program with the organization’s procurement management and contracting services. In November 2016, Greensboro citizens authorized $38.5 million general obligation bonds dedicated to economic development efforts. For one element, the Downtown Streetscape Master Plan design work has been completed, construction is underway and is expected to be complete by fall 2024. This project includes improvements for Greene Street, Summit Avenue, Eugene Street, David Street and Bellemeade Street. These projects will create a safe, comfortable and well-connected streetscape system. In March 2021, City Council adopted updated economic development guidelines that provide tiered investments to strategic industries and promote jobs

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