City Awarded for Highest Principles of Governmental Budgeting for the Second Time in 2021
Dec. 9, 2021
The City of Albuquerque’s Department of Finance and Administrative Services (DFAS) has been awarded the Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the second time this year. The award recognized the city’s Fiscal Year 2022 Operating budget.
“We continue to safeguard taxpayer dollars, and put them to work in the most effective ways possible,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “Our finance team continues to earn national recognition for their efforts, allowing us to focus on investing in our community and creating a better Burque for generations to come.”
“This is a notable achievement for our Office of Management and Budget as the GFOA recently modernized its award criteria to reflect changing practices and technology advances in the field of government budgeting that make information more accessible to the public” said Renée Martínez, Director of Finance & Administrative Services.
The award is given to state and local governments that show commitment to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting, and satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation.
The GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award represents significant achievement by the DFAS. The award’s guidelines set forth by the GFOA are designed to assess how well the governmental body's budget serves as:
- A policy document
- A financial plan
- An operations guide
- A communications device
Budget documents must be rated "proficient" in all four categories, and in fourteen mandatory criteria within the categories, to receive the award.
"Our second GFOA award in a year is a great achievement for the City and the DFAS staff and management,” said Chief Financial Officer Sanjay Bhakta. “We’ll continue working for the people of Albuquerque and building a fiscally sound budget through innovative and smart financial processes.”
The City of Albuquerque also holds a ‘AAA’ rating from Standard & Poor’s (S&P)—the highest rating assigned by S&P Global Ratings, meaning the City’s capacity to meet its financial obligations is extremely robust.
There are over 1,700 participants in the GFOA Budget Awards Program. The most recent Budget Award recipients, along with their corresponding budget documents, are posted quarterly on GFOA's website. Award recipients have pioneered efforts to improve the quality of budgeting and provide an excellent example for other governments throughout North America.