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Significant Accounting Policies <br />Management has the responsibility for selection and use of appropriate accounting policies. In <br />accordance with the terms of our engagement letter, we will advise management about the <br />appropriateness of accounting policies and their application. The significant accounting policies used <br />by the City of Lino Lakes are described in Note 1 to the financial statements. During the year ended <br />December 31, 2003, the City of Lino Lakes, Minnesota adopted Governmental Accounting Standards <br />Board No. 34, Basic Financial Statements — and Management's Discussion and Analysis — for State <br />and Local Governments. The implementation of GASB Statement No. 34 caused the opening fund <br />balance at December 31, 2002, to be restated in terms of "net assets" as explained further in Note 1. <br />We noted no transactions entered into by the City during the year that were both significant and <br />unusual, and of which, under professional standards, we are required to inform you, or transactions for <br />which there is a lack of authoritative guidance or consensus. <br />Accounting Estimates <br />Accounting estimates are an integral part of the financial statements prepared by management and are <br />based on management's knowledge and experience about past and current events and assumptions <br />about future events. Certain accounting estimates are particularly sensitive because of their significance <br />to the financial statements and because of the possibility that future events affecting them may differ <br />significantly from those expected. The most sensitive estimates affecting the financial statements were: <br />Management's estimate of the cost of infrastructure (streets, storm sewers, and trails) is based on <br />the current replacement cost of such infrastructure deflated to the year of construction using price <br />indexes. We evaluated the key factors and assumptions used to develop the estimated cost of the <br />City's infrastructure in determining that it is reasonable in relation to the basic financial statements <br />taken as a whole. <br />Annual depreciation is provided using rates sufficient to fully depreciate the related fixed assets <br />over their useful lives based on past experiences. <br />The year end valuation of investments at fair value. <br />The City has recognized a liability for earned sick leave benefits. The amount recorded includes <br />amounts earned through December 31, 2003 by employees eligible for retirement at that date. In <br />addition, an amount is recorded for those individuals not eligible for retirement at December 31, <br />2003, but for whom pay-out of the amount earned to that date is reasonably expected. This <br />estimate is derived by an analysis of the pay-out history and current and anticipated future <br />employment conditions. <br />We evaluated the key factors and assumptions used to develop the above estimates in determining that <br />it is reasonable in relation to the financial statements taken as a whole. <br />Significant Audit Adjustments <br />For purposes of this letter, professional standards define an audit adjustment as a proposed correction <br />of the financial statements that, in our judgment, may not have been detected except through our <br />auditing procedures. An audit adjustment may or may not indicate matters that could have a significant <br />effect on the City's financial reporting process (that is, cause future financial statements to be materially <br />misstated). In our judgment, none of the adjustments we proposed, whether recorded or unrecorded by <br />the City, either individually or in the aggregate, indicate matters that could have a significant effect on <br />the City's financial reporting process. <br />Management did not identify and we did not notify them of any uncorrected financial statement <br />misstatements. <br />(5) <br />