The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada recently awarded the City of Kent with the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (known as CAFR in the industry) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017.
This is the 24th such honor for the City of Kent.
The CAFR is judged by an impartial panel, comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector financial reporting, to determine if it meets the high standards of the program, which includes demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to fully communicate an organization’s financial story and motivate potential users to read the CAFR.
“Our finance team works hard all year long to ensure that our financial reporting is not only accurate and transparent, but easy to follow and understand, whether you are a resident or an elected official,” said Barbara Lopez, Interim Finance Director. ”This award is a top industry honor, and we are so pleased to be worthy of the CAFR again this year. This is a great accomplishment for the city, and I want to personally thank our Mayor, City Council and our Chief Administrative Officer for supporting our work each and every day.”
The GFOA established the CAFR award in 1945 to encourage and assist state and local governments to go beyond the minimum requirements of generally accepted accounting principles to prepare comprehensive annual financial reports that evidence the spirit of transparency and full disclosure and then to recognize individual governments that succeed in achieving that goal.