GFOA Budget Criteria and Examples

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GFOA Budget Criteriaand Examples

• Eric R. Johnson
• Director of Management and Budget, Hillsborough
  County

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Four sets of criteria

• The budget as a policy document
• The budget as a financial plan
• The budget as an operations guide
• The budget as a communications device

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Why are these criteria valuable

• Peer review can be important in budgeting, where
  there are recommended practices in place of
  standards.
• The focus on policy, finance, operations, and
  communications provides balance.
• Whether you formally apply to the GFOA program or
  not, the criteria help recognize the needs and
  interests of the wide variety of stakeholders
  who may use a budget.

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City of Pensacola
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The Budget as a Policy Document
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Include a coherent statement of entity-wide
long-term financial policies. (Mandatory
Criterion)

• Provide a summary of financial policies and goals
• Define a balanced budget
• Present all financial policies in one place

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Sources of Financial Policies

• Review budget documents for other entities on the
  web
• www.gfoa.org/services/documents/Budget_Winners_20
  05_002.doc
• Review National Advisory Council on State and
  Local Budgeting best practices
• www.gfoa.org/services/nacslb/
• Review GFOA recommended practices
• www.gfoa.org/services/rp/

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Balanced budget definition
Volusia County
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City of Tampa
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Hillsborough County
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Include a coherent statement of entity-wide,
non-financial goals and objectives that address
long-term concerns and issues.

• Include non-financial policies/goals
• Include these policies/goals together in the
  budget message or in another section that is
  separate from the departmental sections
• Examples
• An organization mission statement or values
• A strategic plan or references to specific
  strategic plan goals and objectives in the budget
  message

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Strategic Goals

• Customer Service
• Economic Development
• Culture/Leisure/Recreation
• Safe Community

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Long-term vision values
Hillsborough County
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Strategic Plan Goals Objectives
Hillsborough County
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Community Goals
City of Tampa
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Describe the entitys short-term initiatives that
guided the development of the budget for the
upcoming year.

• Include short-term initiatives
• Discuss how the short-term initiatives guided the
  development of the budget
• Explain changes in staffing levels for the budget
  year(s) Note if there are no changes in staffing
  levels

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Sample Initiatives in the Budget

• Compensation changes salaries, FRS or local
  retirement rates, health insurance.
• Capital improvements funded or those coming on
  line (e.g., a new library, fire station, jail).
• Millage rate change, fee changes
• Service level changes, including any mandates
• Annexation impacts
• Redevelopment and/or economic development plans
• describe staffing impacts

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City of Tampa
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City of Boca Raton
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Capital Funding
Seminole County
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Staffing Changes with Explanation
City of Gainesville
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Include a budget message that articulates
priorities and issues for the budget for the new
year. The message should describe significant
changes in priorities from the current year and
explain the factors that led to those changes.
The message may take one of several forms
(e.g., transmittal letter, budget summary
section).(Mandatory Criterion)
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Include a budget message...

• Highlight the principal issues facing the
  governing body in developing the budget (e.g.,
  policy issues, economic factors, regulator and
  legislative challenges)
• Describe the action to be taken to address these
  issues
• Explain how the priorities for the budget year
  differ from the priorities of the current year
• Make sure the message is comprehensive enough to
  address the entire entity

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Special Considerations
City of Casselberry
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Budget Challenges
Seminole County
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Key Policy Issues
Hillsborough County
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Fort Pierce Utilities Authority
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Include clearly stated goals and objectives of
organizational units.

• Identify unit goals and objectives
• Link them to overall goals of the entity
• Short-term objectives should be quantifiable
  (goals tend to be vague, value-laden statements
  while objectives are measurable)

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City of Pembroke Pines
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Human Resources Department Objective 11 By FY
08, maintain diversity in the workforce in all
EEO-4 categories of Hillsborough County
government under the County Administrator,
representative within a 10 variation when
compared to the workforce census of Hillsborough
County, as measured by data from the Human
Resources Information System (HRIS) (Strategic
Plan Goal 4, Objective A). Note that this
departmental objective is measurable, has a
multi-year deadline, and ties to the Countys
strategic plan.