Cottonwood Falls Pulse
City of Cottonwood Falls, Kansas — the county seat of Chase County — finances from the audited regulatory-basis financial statement for the year ended December 31, 2025 (Cindy Jensen, CPA; unmodified opinion on the regulatory basis). Kansas cities report on the regulatory basis, not GAAP.
Total receipts
$1,712,753
Total expenditures
$1,824,882
Ending unencumbered cash
$1,936,983
Ending cash
$1,984,603
General Fund ending
$113,059
Total contractual debt
$1,026,977
FY2025 · Audited
Audited actuals by fund
Ending unencumbered cash balances at December 31, 2025, from the summary statement. The listed balances sum exactly to the statement's total of $1,936,983.
| Fund | Balance |
|---|---|
| General Fund | $113,059 |
| Sales Tax Fund | $1,019,720 |
| Special Highway | $140,172 |
| Special Parks & Recreation | $19,309 |
| Municipal Equipment Reserve | $32,561 |
| Swope Park Equipment | $6,843 |
| Veterans Memorial | $17,293 |
| Cottonwood Falls Volunteers | $0 |
| Pool Renovation | $4,793 |
| Bill North Courtyard | $0 |
| Chase Disc Golf | $1,566 |
| Christmas Lights | $0 |
| ARPA Fund | $0 |
| RHID | $0 |
| Capital Projects | $65,755 |
| Sewer | $134,866 |
| Solid Waste | $171,353 |
| Water | $209,693 |
| Total reporting entity (excl. agency funds) | $1,936,983 |
Sum-check: beginning unencumbered cash $2,049,112 + receipts $1,712,753 − expenditures $1,824,882 = ending unencumbered cash $1,936,983. Total cash is $1,984,603 (checking $1,726,321 + certificates of deposit $260,660 + petty cash $150, less agency funds of $2,528); the $47,620 difference from unencumbered cash is outstanding encumbrances and accounts payable.
Source: City of Cottonwood Falls — Regulatory Basis Financial Statement, year ended December 31, 2025 (summary statement) (FY2025 audit).
FY2025 · Audited
General Fund detail
General Fund receipts of $496,127 against expenditures of $618,330 — a $122,203 decrease — from an opening unencumbered balance of $235,262 to $113,059.
| Function | Actual |
|---|---|
| General Government | $321,305 |
| Streets | $45,577 |
| Streets — debt service | $29,759 |
| Airport | $3,848 |
| Pool | $51,596 |
| Parks | $40,224 |
| Public Safety | $31,014 |
| Employee Benefits | $57,508 |
| Law Enforcement | $11,000 |
| Housing Authority | $10,200 |
| Industrial Development | $6,000 |
| Dump | $3,701 |
| Fireworks | $6,598 |
| Total General Fund expenditures | $618,330 |
Sum-check: the 13 expenditure rows sum to $618,330. General Fund actual receipts were $496,127, while expenditures were budgeted at $745,339 and actual expenditures were $618,330 ($127,009 under budget).
Source: City of Cottonwood Falls — FY2025 audit (General Fund schedule) (FY2025 audit).
FY2025 · Budget vs. actual
Budget comparison
Certified budget against actual expenditures for budgeted funds (Schedule 1). Every fund spent under its certified budget.
| Fund | Budget / Actual |
|---|---|
| General Fund — budget | $745,339 |
| General Fund — actual | $618,330 |
| Sales Tax — budget | $1,432,609 |
| Sales Tax — actual | $208,421 |
| Special Highway — budget | $138,501 |
| Special Highway — actual | $2,116 |
| Special Parks & Recreation — budget | $23,113 |
| Special Parks & Recreation — actual | $3,395 |
| Water — budget | $551,753 |
| Water — actual | $484,871 |
| Sewer — budget | $163,512 |
| Sewer — actual | $46,169 |
| Solid Waste — budget | $353,292 |
| Solid Waste — actual | $163,545 |
| General Fund variance (under budget) | $127,009 |
Source: City of Cottonwood Falls — FY2025 audit (Schedule 1) (FY2025 audit).
FY2025 · Audited
Long-term debt
Changes in long-term liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2025 (Note 5). The regulatory basis does not recognize capital assets or long-term debt on the face of the statement; the note schedule below is the debt record.
| Obligation | Balance |
|---|---|
| GO Bonds, Series 2022 (2.25%, due 2042) | $416,489 |
| KDHE Water loan (2.25%, due 2034) | $585,757 |
| 2021 Peterbilt lease (1.75%, due 2027) | $24,731 |
| 2020 Mower lease | $0 |
| Total contractual indebtedness | $1,026,977 |
Principal due in 2026 is $95,341; total principal and interest to maturity is $1,181,239. The city's KPERS net pension liability share of $206,618 is disclosed in the notes but, under the regulatory basis, is not reported in the financial statement.
Source: City of Cottonwood Falls — FY2025 audit (Note 5) (FY2025 audit).
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Disclosures
- Regulatory basis. The statement is prepared under the Kansas Municipal Audit and Accounting Guide, not U.S. GAAP. The auditor issued an adverse opinion on GAAP presentation and an unmodified opinion on the regulatory basis.
- ARPA. The city's $131,660 ARPA allocation was fully disbursed as of December 31, 2025; the ARPA fund balance is $0.
- Capital projects. The CDBG ADA project was completed in 2025 at a cost of $193,120 (grant $161,100). The city also passed through $649,955 received and spent for the Chase County Old School Development District RHID project.
Source: City of Cottonwood Falls — FY2025 audit (notes) (FY2025 audit).