I'm more in Travis's camp, but maybe for different reasons. The
accounting and auditing stuff hasn't been difficult to deal with....if
you're keeping good records anyway, then it's not bad. You may just
have to be more anal than you're used to. For everything we bought with
the people's money we had to keep track of where it was installed and
demonstrate that it actually was installed where we said (with photos,
etc). Then an auditor came by to double check that we weren't making it
all up.
I agree the gov wants you to have a sound plan before they'll fund
you....and that if you really had a sound plan then a bank would fund
it.
I think one difference is that if the bank doesn't understand what
you're doing, they'll just say no because it's not safe for them to get
involved in things they don't understand. If the bureaucrat doesn't
understand it they'll listen to you and pretend they're getting it. The
other funny thing is that I don't think the projects chosen for funding
are always the best proposals....sometimes it's the people who talk the
best line of BS or who have support from the right people.
I'm a cynic, and my involvement in funding is peripheral, so take my 2c
with a grain of salt. Sterling's idea is interesting and I hope he's
successful with it. I'm not trying to be a killjoy.
------ Original Message ------
From: "Jaime Solorza" <[email protected]>
To: "Animal Farm" <[email protected]>
Sent: 8/11/2016 1:23:34 PM
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Special Assessment
The folks from Alaska I work for seem to know how to work the system...
They keep getting some choice government contracts.
On Aug 11, 2016 11:16 AM, "Travis Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote:
Just saying that government money is never what it's cracked up to be.
I've never taken a single dime (loan, grant, tax, assessment, etc) and
probably never will, with any of my companies. It's just not worth all
the extra work and headaches. If you have a sound business plan and
operation, just borrow the money and get it done.
There are all kinds of ways to be creative when it comes to funding.
Leasing equipment, 60 day term credit cards, lines of credit (secured
with assets of the business), or even home equity loans (4.25% right
now, with interest only payments), etc.
Travis
On 8/11/2016 10:52 AM, Sterling Jacobson wrote:
Definitely.
Travis, are you just generally saying the money comes with strings
attached, or do you have actual specific experience with Special
Assessment in this manner?
-----Original Message-----
From: Af [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chuck McCown
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2016 10:51 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Special Assessment
Yeah, good people find themselves in legal trouble all the time when
getting involved with guvmnt money. Less than zero tolerance for
even the appearance of evil.
-----Original Message-----
From: Travis Johnson
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2016 10:48 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Special Assessment
You better build in an additional 100% for overhead costs... I would
imagine you would have to start doing audited tax returns and
financials every year. You will also have to have someone tracking
every single expense and what it is attached to, etc.
Then you will have all the overhead and administrative costs for
managing the paperwork and government related money.
Travis
On 8/11/2016 10:21 AM, Sterling Jacobson wrote:
Has anyone here ever done a special assessment funded project?
I have a couple of examples in Utah/Idaho, but am looking for
specific
examples and advice from my provider friends here.
I'm not sure if it's called something else in other states so this
is
what I have been told:
You talk to a land developer, get them to partner up with your
company
and the city.
They allow a tax or assessment item to be attached to the developed
lot/unit for around 20 years.
Sometime like $150 a year, so $3000 total over the period.
The city council agrees and creates a bond type item for that and
your
company gets a check for the total amount times number of
properties.
Then you work with the developer to install all of the necessary
stuff
for internet, which is fiber in my case.
And the new property owner has your service available from the get
go,
maybe with free install, and a $150 a year discount on the service
for
20 years.
Anyone done anything like this?
