WAUKESHA COUNTY Waukesha, Wisconsin

WAUKESHA COUNTY, WISCONSINNOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTSDecember 31, 2010NOTE 1 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONT’D)4. Restricted AssetsMandatory segregations of assets are presented as restricted assets. The balance of the county’s selfinsuredretention (SIR) deposit held by WMMIC is shown as restricted cash and investments.5. Capital AssetsGOVERNMENT –WIDE STATEMENTSCapital assets, which include property, plant, and equipment, are reported in the government-widefinancial statements. The County defines capital assets as assets with an initial cost of more than $5,000for general capital assets and $100,000 for infrastructure assets, and an estimated useful life in excess ofone year. All capital assets are valued at historical cost or estimated historical cost if actual amounts areunavailable. Donated capital assets are recorded at their estimated fair value at the date of donation.Additions to and replacements of capital assets of business-type activities are recorded at original cost,which includes material, labor, overhead, and an allowance for the cost of funds used during constructionwhen significant. For tax-exempt debt, the amount of interest capitalized equals the interest expenseincurred during construction netted against any interest revenue from temporary investment of borrowedfund proceeds. No interest expense was capitalized in 2010. The cost of renewals and bettermentsrelating to retirement units is added to plant accounts. The cost of property replaced, retired or otherwisedisposed of is deducted from plant accounts and, generally, together with removal costs less salvage, ischarged to accumulated depreciation.The County implemented GASB 51, Accounting and Financial Reporting for Intangible Assets, for theyear ended December 31, 2010. As of year end the County had no significant intangible assets.Depreciation of all exhaustible capital assets is recorded as an allocated expense in the statement ofactivities, with accumulated depreciation reflected in the statement of net assets. Depreciation is providedover the assets’ estimated useful lives using the straight-line method of depreciation. The range ofestimated useful lives by type of asset is as follows:BuildingsLand ImprovementsMachinery and EquipmentInfrastructure25-40 Years20 Years2-15 Years15-50 YearsFUND FINANCIAL STATEMENTSIn the fund financial statements, capital assets used in governmental fund operations are accounted foras capital outlay expenditures of the governmental fund upon acquisition. Capital assets used inproprietary fund operations are accounted for the same way as in the government-wide statements.6. Other AssetsIn governmental funds, debt issuance costs are recognized as expenditures in the current period. For thegovernment-wide and proprietary fund type financial statements, debt issuance costs are deferred andamortized over the term of the debt issue.50