U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM N-17F-2
Certificate of Accounting of Securities and Similar
Investments in the Custody of
Management Investment Companies
Pursuant to Rule 17f-2 (17 CFR 270.17f-2)
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1. Investment Company Act File Number: Date examination completed:
811-4503 December 31, 1998
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2. State identification Number: N/A
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AL AK AZ AR CA CO
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CT DE DC FL GA HI
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ID IL IN IA KS KY
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LA ME MD MA MI MN
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MS MO MT NE NV NH
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NJ NM NY NC ND OH
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OK OR PA RI SC SD
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TN TX UT VT VA WA
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WV WI WY PUERTO RICO
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Other (specify):
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3. Exact name of investment company as specified in registration statement:
Tax-Free Trust of Arizona
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4. Address of principal executive office (number, street, city, state, zip
code):
380 Madison Avenue, Suite 2300, New York, NY 10017
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INSTRUCTIONS
This Form must be completed by investment companies that have custody of
securities or similar investments.
Investment Company
1. All items must be completed by the investment company.
2. Give this Form to the independent public accountant who, in compliance
with Rule 17f-2 under the Act and applicable state law, examines
securities and similar investments in the custody of the investment
company.
Accountant
3. Submit this Form to the Securities and Exchange Commission and
appropriate state securities administrators when filing the certificate
of accounting required by Rule 17f-2 under the Act and applicable state
law. File the original and one copy with the Securities and Exchange
Commission's principal office in Washington, D.C., one copy with the
regional office for the region in which the investment company's
principal business operations are conducted, and one copy with the
appropriate state administrator(s), if applicable.
THIS FORM MUST BE GIVEN TO YOUR INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT
Note: The estimated average burden hours are made solely for purposes of the
Paperwork Reduction Act, and are not derived from a comprehensive or even
a representative survey or study of the costs of SEC rules and forms.
Direct any comments concerning the accuracy of the estimated average
burden hours for compliance with SEC rules and forms to Kenneth A.
Fogash, Deputy Executive Director, U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, 450 Fifth St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549 and Gary
Waxman, Clearance Officer, Office of Management and Budget, Room 3208,
New Executive Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20503.
<PAGE>
Independent Auditors' Report
To the Board of Trustees of Tax-Free Trust of Arizona and
the Securities and Exchange Commission:
We have examined management's assertion about Tax-Free Trust of Arizona's
(the "Trust") compliance with the requirements of subsections (b) and (c) of
Rule 17f-2 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 as of December 31, 1998,
included in the accompanying Management Statement regarding Compliance with
Certain Provisions of the Investment Company Act of 1940. Management is
responsible for the Trust's compliance with those requirements. Our
responsibility is to express an opinion on management's assertion about the
Trust's compliance based on our examination.
Our examination was made in accordance with standards established by the
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and, accordingly, included
examining, on a test basis, evidence about the Trust's compliance with those
requirements and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary
in the circumstances. Included among our procedures were the following tests
performed as of December 31, 1998, and the period from September 30, 1998
(the date of our last examination) through December 31, 1998, with respect to
securities transactions, without prior notice to management:
* We agreed all securities reported by the Trust's accounting records to
Custody records as of December 31, 1998;
* For securities purchased or sold but not yet settled, we verified the
subsequent settlement on Custody records of trades shown as pending as of
December 31, 1998, on the Fund's accounting records;
* We reviewed Bank One's Investment Management & Trust Group "Report of
Policies and Procedures Placed in Operation and Test of Operating
Effectiveness for the Trust Application System" ("SAS 70 Report") for the
period January 1, 1997 to December 31, 1997, and noted that no negative
findings were reported in the areas of Asset Custody and Control and Trust
Accounting System;
* We obtained representation from the Custodian that all control policies
and procedures detailed in Section III of Bank One's SAS 70 Report, have
remained in operation and functioned adequately from January 1, 1998 through
February 1, 1999.
We believe that our examination provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Our examination does not provide a legal determination of the Trust's
compliance with specified requirements.
In our opinion, management's assertion that Tax-Free Trust of Arizona was in
compliance with the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of Rule 17f-2 of
the Investment Company Act of 1940 as of December 31, 1998, and for the
period from September 30, 1998 through December 31, 1998 is fairly stated in
all material respects.
This report is intended solely for the information and use of management of
Tax-Free Trust of Arizona and the Securities and Exchange Commission and
should not be used for any other purpose.
February 1, 1999
