Beach City Received a Gift of Corporate Stock Valued at $1,200,000

Essay

Beach City received a gift of corporate stock valued at $1,200,000 on the date of the gift. The donor specified that the principal amount of the gift be maintained in perpetuity, but that earnings can be used to acquire works of art to improve the appearance of public buildings. All changes in fair value are to increase or decrease the principal amount of the gift. Assuming that Beach City uses a permanent fund to account for the endowment and a special revenue fund to account for the earmarked earnings from the endowment, explain the accounting process for (1) receipt of the original gift, (2) receipt of quarterly dividends, (3) notification that fair value of the original stock increased by $3,000 during the year, and (4) the effect on fund balances of closing temporary accounts at year-end. (Note: Ignore the effects of the transactions at the government-wide level).