The City of Gastonia has received the Government Finance Officers Association’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its fiscal year 2021 budget report. The association describes the award as “the highest form of recognition in governmental budgeting,” adding that the award “represents a significant achievement.” This is the 26th year that the City has received the award.
“Producing a budget that is user-friendly, informative, and transparent is important to our citizens, investors, and other governing agencies because it helps them make more informed decisions,” said Crystal Certain, the City’s director of financial services. “It is an honor to be recognized for our continued commitment to the budget process and we hope that our efforts will serve as an example to others.”
More than 1,600 organizations participate in the Budget Awards Program. The GFOA, a professional organization that provides guidance and training to more than 19,000 local and state government finance officials, presents the annual award to organizations whose budget reports “reflect the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting.”
To receive the budget award an organization must satisfy nationally-recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. Those guidelines are designed to assess how well a budget report serves as a financial plan, a policy document, an operations guide, and a communications vehicle. The City of Gastonia’s budget report was rated as “proficient” in the four major categories, meeting the requirements of 14 mandatory criteria within those categories.
See the City’s fiscal year 2021 budget.
