Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs


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RUBA Status Report

Community:	Nunapitchuk	RUBA:	Yes
Staff:	Eli Jacobson	Agreement:	No
DCA Region:	Bethel	Agreement Date:
Region:	Lower Kuskokwim	Exp Date:
Govt Type(s):	2nd Class City
Borough:	Unorganized	Assessment Date:	3/30/2011
Population:	496
Active Community:	Yes	Date Updated:	4/5/2013

Community Sanitation Overview:	The City of Nunapitchuk operates the washeteria, water treatment plant, garbage collection, landfill/lagoon, and the flush haul system for the community. The utility services provide water deliveries and septic haul-out to residential customers connected to the flush haul system. Those not connected to the flush haul, utilize the container haul system. Wastewater containers are emptied into one of two sewage lagoons (one on each side of the River). The City provides piped water to the school. Teacher's housing, located in the old school, has an independent water and wastewater system that still needs improvements. Plans are underway for a piped watering point for the other half of the community located on the other side of the river, and to close and fill in old sewage bunkers and the lagoon.
RUBA Status and Activities This Quarter:	On December 5, 2012, September 14, 2012, June 1, 2012, March 27, 2012, December 5, 2011, September 20, 2011 and On March 15, 2013, December 5, 2012, September 14, 2012, June 1, 2012, March 27, 2012, December 5, 2011, September 20, 2011 and June 15, 2011 requests for information to update the quarterly online RUBA report were sent to the City of Nunapitchuk. At the time of this writing the city has not provided the requested information. Therefore the city is no longer in compliance for several essential indicators until documents needed for verification can be provided.


Capacity Indicator: Finances
Essential Indicators
No	All revenues and expenses for the utility are listed in the utility budget.
No	The utility has adopted a balanced realistic budget.
No	Monthly financial reports are prepared and submitted to the policy making board.
Yes	The utility is current in paying all water/wastewater electric bills.
Yes	The utility has on hand a year's adequate fuel supply or it has a financial plan to purchase an adequate supply.
No	The utility is receiving revenues (user fees or other sources) sufficient to cover operating expenses.
Sustainable Indicators
No	The utility is receiving revenues (user fees or other sources sufficient to cover operating expenses and Repair & Replacement (R) costs.
No	YTD revenues are at a level equal to or above those budgeted.
No	YTD expenditures are at a level equal to or below those budgeted.
No	A monthly manager's report is prepared.
No	Budget amendments are completed and adopted as necessary.
Finances Comment:	The FY 2013 city budget needs to be submitted to the Bethel office. The Bethel RUBA office has not been provided with monthly financial statements since November 2009. RUBA staff contacted Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) on March 19, 2013. AVEC communicated that the City of Nunapitchuk is current on electric bills. The city clerk does not give a monthly report to the council. City council meetings are set for the second and fourth Monday of each month, and budget amendments are adopted as necessary.

Capacity Indicator: Accounting Systems
Essential Indicators
Yes	The utility has adopted a collection policy and actively follows it.
Yes	The utility bills customers on a regular basis.
Yes	An accounts receivable system is in place which tracks customers and reports past due accounts and amounts.
Yes	An accounts payable system is in place.
Yes	The payroll system correctly calculates payroll and keeps records.
Yes	A cash receipt system is in place that records incoming money and how it was spent.
Yes	The utility has a cash disbursement system that records how money was spent.
Sustainable Indicators
Yes	A chart of accounts is used that identifies categories in a reasonable, usable manner.
No	Monthly bank reconciliations have been completed for all utility accounts.
Yes	The utility has a purchasing system that requires approval prior to purchase, and the approval process compares proposed purchases to budgeted amounts.
Accounting Systems Comment:	The City of Nunapitchuk uses QuickBooks for all accounting processes. Nunapitchuk has a written and adopted utility collection policy. Customers are billed on a regular basis, and an enforcement system is in use to deal with delinquent accounts. Accounts receivable and accounts payable are also done with QuickBooks. A receipt book is used for all customer payments. Receipts are given directly to the customer when payment is received. The documentation in the receipt book is then used to make entries in ledgers and in QuickBooks. QuickBooks is also used for payroll. The city bookkeeper demonstrated, in QuickBooks, the list of vendors, and how the cash disbursements are tracked. Nunapitchuk has not provided bank reconciliations to the RUBA staff to the date of this writing. Purchases over fifty dollars have to be approved by the city council.

Capacity Indicator: Tax Problems
Essential Indicators
No	The utility has a system to accurately calculate, track, and report payroll tax liabilities.
No	The utility is current on filing tax reports.
No	The utility is current on making tax deposits.
N/A	If there are any past due tax liabilities or recorded tax liens, a lien release has been issued or a repayment agreement has been signed and repayments are current.
Tax Problems Comment:	The City of Nunapitchuk uses QuickBooks to calculate and report payroll taxes. A form requesting release of federal tax information from 2008 to 2012 was sent to the City of Nunapitchuk on March 15, 2013. At the time of this writing this form has not been received by the Bethel office, and therefore it cannot be determined if the City of Nunapitchuk is current on Federal taxes. The state Department of Labor (DOL) was contacted on March 20, 2013. DOL verified that Nunapitchuk is current on their Employment Security Contributions account. Nunapitchuk is not on the Lien Watch Report dated January-February 2013.

Capacity Indicator: Personnel System
Essential Indicators
Yes	The utility has a posted workers compensation insurance policy in effect.
Sustainable Indicators
Yes	The utility has adopted and uses a Personnel Policy, which has been reviewed by an attorney, AML or Commerce for topics and language.
Yes	The utility has adequate written job descriptions for all positions.
Yes	The utility has adopted and follows a written personnel evaluation process that ties the job description to the evaluation.
Yes	The utility has an adequate written hiring process.
No	The utility has personnel folders on every employee that contain at least: I-9, Job Application and Letter of Acceptance.
Yes	The utility has a probationary period for new hires that includes orientation, job training/oversight, and evaluations.
Yes	The utility provides training opportunities to staff as needed and available.
Personnel System Comment:	The City of Nunapitchuk workers compensation insurance policy was current as of March 31, 2013. A personnel policy has been adopted and is in use. The utility has written job descriptions for all positions. A copy of the city clerk position was provided as a sample. The utility has a written hiring process found in the personnel policy. Personnel folders that include I-9's, job application, and letters of acceptance should be created. The utility has a probationary period with an evaluation after three months. On-the-job training and additional training opportunities are provided as necessary. Staff are encouraged to pursue further training opportunities.

Capacity Indicator: Organizational Management
Essential Indicators
Yes	The entity that owns the utility is known; the entity that will operate the utility is set.
Yes	The policy making body is active in policy making of the utility.
Yes	The policy making body enforces utility policy.
Yes	The utility has an adequately trained manager.
Yes	The utility has an adequately trained bookkeeper.
Yes	The utility has an adequately trained operator or operators.
Yes	The utility has adopted the necessary ordinances (or rules and regulations) necessary to give it the authority to operate.
Sustainable Indicators
Yes	The utility has adopted an organizational chart that reflects the current structure.
No	The policy making body meets as required.
No	The utility complies with the open meeting act for all meetings.
Organizational Management Comment:	The City of Nunapitchuk owns the utility and the city council is the policy making body and makes sure the policy is enforced. The utility is operated by city employees. The city clerk was hired September 20012. The duties of manager are also performed by the city clerk. Nunapitchuk's bookkeeper and utility clerk both use QuickBooks on a daily basis. The city clerk supervises the bookkeeper, utility clerk, and the operator. The operator has been employed for over ten years and is working on her certifications. The ordinances provide the city staff the authority they need for operation. The organizational structure is informally known, but an organizational chart has not been adopted. The policy making body meets the second and fourth Monday of each month which is open to the public. The city clerk said meetings are not posted.

Capacity Indicator: Operation of Utility
Essential Indicators
Yes	The utility operator(s) are actively working towards necessary certification.
Yes	The utility has a preventative maintenance plan developed for the existing sanitation facilities.
Sustainable Indicators
No	The manager receives a monthly O&M report from the utility operator and routinely "spot checks" the facilities to see that the maintenance items are being completed.
No	The utility has a safety manual and holds safety meetings.
Yes	Utility facilities have not suffered any major problems/outages due to management issues that are unresolved.
Yes	The utility is operating at the level of service that was proposed.
Yes	The operator provides status reports to the manager on a routine basis.
No	The utility has completed and distributed its "Consumer Confidence Report".
Yes	The utility is not on the "Significant Non-Complier" (SNC) list.
No	The utility maintains an inventory control list.
No	The utility maintains a critical spare parts list.
Operation of Utility Comment:	The utility operator is a permanent part-time employee. The utility has a written preventative maintenance plan. The city clerk is in daily contact with the utility operator, and receives regular verbal status reports, but does not spot check the facility. The utility should create a safety manual, and hold regular safety meetings. The utility is functioning as intended and no major outages have occurred. The CCR has not been posted or sent out. The city is not on the January 2013 significant non-compliers list. The utility does not have an inventory control, or critical spare parts list.

RUBA Activities for the Coming Quarter:

In order for a community to maintain RUBA compliance an onsite RUBA assessment must be completed every two years. The last RUBA assessment was finalized on March 29, 2011 which no longer meets this criteria. RUBA staff received an invitation to conduct an assessment and a trip is being planned for late April.