Benton County, Washington has been awarded 11 consecutive Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards, for each budget cycle since 2006. The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) established the Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program (Budget Awards Program) in 1984 to encourage and assist state and local governments to prepare budget documents of the very highest quality that reflect both the guidelines established by the National Advisory Council on State and Local Budgeting and the GFOA’s best practices on budgeting and then to recognize individual governments that succeed in achieving that goal.
Documents submitted to the Budget Awards Program are reviewed by selected members of the GFOA professional staff and by outside reviewers with experience in public-sector budgeting. In 2006, Benton County made the decision to prepare a document that brought forth the County’s mission statement and compiled prior decisions adopted by the Board of Commissioners; decisions that shaped the County into what it is today. This document, called the Budget Award Book, is prepared each budget cycle and is used as a policy document, an operations guide, a financial plan, and a communications device for the citizens Benton County serves.
It is imperative that the citizens receive insight as to why the Board of Benton County Commissioners make certain decisions and understand the challenges Benton County faces such as meeting growing service demands and voted revenue constraints.
