Florida Special District Handbook Online
Section 2 - 3: The Annual Financial Report
The Annual Financial Report is a very important report that the Department of Financial Services uses to collect uniform fiscal data from all special districts, municipalities, and counties in Florida.
Be careful not to confuse the Annual Financial Report with the Annual Financial Audit Report (see Section 2 - 4: The Annual Financial Audit Report). These are two separate reports with two different filing requirements.
The Department of Financial Services enters data from the Annual Financial Report
into a database to prepare special financial reports for use by numerous governmental,
financial, and civic entities. This data is made available on the Department of Financial Services - Reports Web site 
. It also includes a list of special district that did not comply with the Annual Financial Report requirement.
Special districts must use accounting
principles, such as the Master Chart of Accounts, as described in the Uniform
Accounting System Manual (see Local Government Chart of Accounts and Uniform Accounting System Manuals ), when completing their Annual Financial Report.
All Special Districts Must Comply With The Annual Financial Report Requirement
Independent Special Districts
All independent special districts must file an Annual Financial Report with the Department of Financial Services, even if they have no revenues and no expenditures.
Dependent Special Districts
All dependent special districts must comply as follows, depending on whether they are a component unit (reporting entities) of a municipality or county. "Component Unit" is defined in Summary of Statement No. 14 - The Financial Reporting Entity, Issued June 1991. Questions concerning whether a special district is a component unit must be directed to the special district's auditor or the appropriate municipality or county.
Dependent Special Districts That Are Not Component Units
- File an Annual Financial Report with the Department of Financial Services, even if the special district has no revenues and no expenditures.
Dependent Special Districts That Are Component Units
- These special districts must make their financial information available to the municipality or county in time to be included in the municipality's or county's Annual Financial Report, even if the special district had no revenues and no expenditures.
Deadline For Submitting the Annual Financial Report
The deadline for submitting the Annual Financial Report depends upon whether the special district is required to file an Annual Financial Audit Report with the Auditor General (see Section 2 - 4: The Annual Financial Audit Report for more information). In summary, special districts that are required to file an Annual Financial Audit Report with the Auditor General include the following:
- Special districts with revenues or total expenditures and expenses in excess of $100,000
- Special districts with revenues or total expenditures and expenses between $50,000 and $100,000, but did not have to file an Annual Financial Audit Report the two previous fiscal years
- Special districts with a charter that requires an Annual Financial Audit Report, regardless of its revenues or expenditures
Deadline For Special Districts Required to Have a Financial Audit
- File the Annual Financial Report and the Annual Financial Audit Report with the Department of Financial Services within 45 days after the special district presents the Annual Financial Audit Report to its governing board for approval, but no later than 12 months after the end of the fiscal year (September 30 for most special districts).
- If the special district has a fiscal year end date other than September 30 (such as housing authorities created under Chapter 421, Florida Statutes - Public Housing), and is waiting on its Annual Financial Audit Report to be finalized, file the Annual Financial Report no later than 12 months after the close of the fiscal year under which the special district operates.
Deadline For Special Districts Not Required to Have a Financial Audit
- File the Annual Financial Report with the Department of Financial Services by the 30th of April after the fiscal year the Annual Financial Report covers.
How to File the Annual Financial Report
The Annual Financial Report is filed electronically on the Department of Financial Services web site. Manual submissions are no longer accepted (see Rule 69I-51.003, Florida Administrative Code - Procedures for Local Government Electronic Reporting).
Instructions for Independent Special Districts
- Go to the following web site: Florida Department of Financial Services, Bureau of Local Government.
- Look for the link called "Local Government Electronic Reporting".
- Complete and submit the Annual Financial Report online.
- Email an electronic copy of your Annual Financial Audit Report, if required, to Localgov@myfloridacfo.com.
Instructions for Dependent Special Districts
A dependent special district that is not a component unit may file its own Annual Financial Report directly with the Department of Financial Services. See above "Instructions for Independent Special Districts".
A dependent special district that is a component unit must file through its local governing authority. The local governing authority will include the special district's financial data in its Annual Financial Report and will file the report online with the Department of Financial Services.
A dependent special district that is a component unit should find out from its local governing authority exactly what they need from the special district and when they need it.
Failure to Comply with the Annual Financial Report Requirement
See Consequences of Failure to Comply With Required Reporting for more information about what will happen when special districts do not comply with the Annual Financial Report requirement.