For the second time in a row, the City of Hanford has received the “highest form of recognition in government budgeting” for the preparation of its Biennial Budget. The City first received the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for its Fiscal Year 2024 and Fiscal Year 2025 Biennial Budget. Recently, the organization informed City staff that it had received the award again for its Fiscal Year 2026 and Fiscal Year 2027 Biennial Budget.
“I am extremely proud of our dedicated staff for assembling another exceptional budget document,” Finance Director and Interim City Manager Chris Tavarez said. “The public should know that we are committed to complete transparency in budgeting, and this award is a testament to that.”
The City received the award for following nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. The guidelines are designed to assess how well the budget serves as:
- A policy document
- A financial plan
- An operations guide
- A communications device
To receive the award, these categories, along with 14 mandatory criteria within the categories, must be rated “proficient.”
“The award represents a significant achievement by the entity,” according to the GFOA. “It reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting. Award recipients have pioneered efforts to improve the quality of budgeting and provide an excellent example for other governments throughout North America.”
As stated in the budget’s transmittal letter, a handful of City staff members made significant contributions to the document: Alejandro Solorio and Frank Senteno from the Utilities and Engineering Department, and Destiny Borba, Aubrey Balbina and Penny Sutphin from the Finance Department. Their efforts will be highlighted at next week’s Hanford City Council meeting.
In addition to the 434-page document, the Finance Department also created a digital budget book. It presents a budget overview, fund summaries, funding sources, department budgets and the Capital Improvement Program in an interactive and intuitive format.