Account - A formal record that represents, in monetary units, resources, claims to resources, transactions or other events that result in changes to those resources and claims.

Accounts Payable - Amounts owed for goods or services.

Accounts Receivable - Amounts due to the District.

Additional Discretionary Contribution - Amount(s) contributed to pension plan beyond the statutorially required employer minimum amount(s).

Adopted Budget — The finalized financial plan for a fiscal year, approved by the Board of Directors, detailing expected revenues and planned expenditures.

Advanced Life Support - A higher level of emergency medical care, usually provided by paramedics. Typically includes invasive techniques such as IV therapy, intubation, and/or drug administration.

Allocation - A sum of money alloted for a specific use, or a systematic distribution of costs between and among benefitting cost centers, departments, projects, etc.

Annually Required Contribution - Actuarially determined annual amount due for obligations such as pension and post-retirement health plans.

Apparatus - Vehicles for fighting or extinguishing fire, or for use in emergency medical response.

Appropriations - Funds set aside by formal action for specific use.

Asset - A financial resource, including cash, accounts receivable, and deposits or prepayments.

Budget - Financial plan that serves as an estimate of future revenues and expenditures.

Budget Priorities — Strategic focus areas identified for funding, such as fire protection, emergency services, training, and infrastructure improvements.

Capital Improvement Projects — Large-scale, long-term investments in physical assets (e.g., buildings, equipment, infrastructure) that enhance operational capacity.

Capital Improvement Projects Fund (CIP): Used for the acquisition of property, renovation, or reconstruction of fire stations and other facilities.

Carryover (Rollover) - The transfer of budgeted revenue or expenditure from one fiscal year to another, generally due the anticipation of receipt or expenditure of funds in one year, which is not executed prior to year-end.

Cooperative Agreements — Contracts with federal agencies (e.g., FEMA) that provide funding for specific programs, such as Urban Search and Rescue.

Deficit - Operating expenditures in excess of operating revenues within a financial reporting period.

Depreciation - Depreciation reflects the wear and tear on a capital asset over it's useful life. CVFD utilizes the straight line method of depreciation. Front line apparatus is depreciated over 15 years, while equipment is depreciated over 5 years. Buildings and improvements other than buildings are depreciated over 30 years.

Discount Rate - Expected long-term rate of return on investment assets for pension and other similar obligations.

Dwelling - A building, house or other place of shelter where people live.

Encumbrance - Legal obligation or commitment of funds not yet expended, typically committed through a purchase order.

Estimate - A projection or forecast, generally based on the use of historical data, assumptions, forecasts, etc.

Expenditure - Payment, either in cash, by assuming a liability, or by surrendering an asset.

First Responder - Person with specialized training who is among the first to arrive and provide assistance at the scene of an emergency, such as an accident or natural disaster. First responders include paramedics, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, police officers, and other trained professionals.

Fiscal Year - Period of 12 consecutive months chosen by an entity as its accounting period, which may or may not be a calendar year. CVFD's fiscal year ends June 30.

Fixed (Capital) Asset - Any tangible asset with a life of more than one year, used in an entity's operations.

Front-Line - Primary use vehicles or apparatus.

Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) — A measure representing one full-time position. 

Fund Accounting - Method of accounting and presentation whereby assets and liabilities are grouped according to the purpose for which they are to be used. Generally used by government entities and not- for-profits.

Fund Balance - The difference between General fund assets and liabilities. Classifications of fund balance include: nonspendable, restricted, committed, assigned and unassigned.

General Fund - The primary operating fund, accounting for all financial resources not required to be recorded in another fund. 

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) - Conventions, rules, and procedures necessary to define accepted accounting practice at a particular time. The highest level of such principles are set by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).

Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) - Entity that has authority to establish standards of financial reporting for all units of government.

Hazard - Danger, risk, peril or threat.

Jurisdiction - Power or right of a legal or political agency to exercise its authority over a person, subject matter, or territory.

Liability - Debts or obligations owed by one entity (debtor) to another entity (creditor) payable in money, goods, or services.

Long-Term - Generally matures, extends or applies for more than one year from the current date.

Memorandum of Understanding - A legal document outlining the terms and details of an agreement between parties, including each party's requirements and responsibilities.

Modified Accrual Basis - Recognizes revenues when when they becomes both measurable and available to finance expenditures of the current period. Expenditures are recognized when the fund liability is incurred.

Mutual Aid - Organized, coordinated and cooperative reciprocal assistance in which personnel and equipment from participating surrounding fire departments and other appropriate emergency response agencies are utilized for fire or other generally larger scale emergencies.

Occupancies - Within the context of building construction and building codes, occupancy refers to the use, or intended use, of a building, or portion of a building, for the shelter or support of persons, animals or property.

Other Post-Retirement Benefits (OPEB) - Pensions, health care, life insurance and other benefits that are provided by an employer to retirees, their dependents, or survivors.

Paramedic - Healthcare professional, specially trained and licensed to provide emergency medical services, including advanced life support.

Pension Cost Sharing - Agreement or other arrangement whereby pension plan participants agree to pay some portion of pension costs beyond that which is statutorially required of the participant.

Projection - Prospective financial statements that include one or more hypothetical assumptions.

Purchase Order - Written, legally binding promise to pay for goods or services.

Reserves - Generally synonomous with unassigned Fund balance. Connotes sufficient cash and other liquid assets available to meet ongoing expenditures while providing for some additional funds to be available for contingency purposes.

Resolution - Formal approval of an action or policy, typically memorialized in written form.

Revenues - Sales of products, merchandise, and services; and earnings from taxes, interest, dividends and rents.

Standards of Cover - A comprehensive system for analyzing resource deployment, to determine

whether a fire department is properly deployed to meet its community’s risks and expectations.

Short-Term - Current; ordinarily due within one year.

Special Revenue Fund (SRF): Accounts for funds received and disbursed for federal emergency activities, including grants for the District’s California Task Force 3 Urban Search and Rescue, managed through FEMA agreements.

Succession Development or Succession Planning - The intentional act of developing and training internal people with the potential to fill key technical, managerial and leadership positions.

Suppression - Control and extinguishment of fire.

Surplus - Excess of operating revenues over operating expenses within a financial reporting period.

Tax - Charge levied by a governmental unit on income, consumption, wealth, or other basis.

Turnouts - Personal protective clothing worn by fire personnel.

Unfunded Actuarial Liability - Amounts owed for prior service obligations based on retirement or post-retirement benefit promises to current and former employees, as well as retirees.

Unincorporated - Geographical areas outside the jurisdictional boundaries of incorporated cities.

Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 3 (CA-TF3) — A specialized FEMA-funded emergency response team sponsored by the District to provide disaster response services.