Lynnwood Receives Distinguished Budget Award

LYNNWOOD, WA (October 5, 2021) -The City of Lynnwood is pleased to announce that we have received the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the City's 2021-2022 Adopted Biennial Budget Book.

This national award represents a significant achievement by the City of Lynnwood asit reflects the commitment of the City Council, the Mayor and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting.In order to receive the award, the City had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines and adhere to best practices for effective budget preparation and presentation.

The following guidelines were used by GFOA to assess how well the City’s budget serves the public as:

• A Policy Document that clearly sets forth community goals;
• A Financial Plan that demonstrates careful alignment of expected revenues and expenditures;
• An Operations Guide communicating how our structured budget process achieves industry best practices; and
• A Communications Device that conveys our financial objectives for the biennium.

The City of Lynnwood has received this distinguished budget award consecutively for the 2017-2018, 2019-2020, and now the 2021-2022 Biennial Budget presentation. Mayor Nicola Smith attributes this award to several key factors including the Budgeting for Outcomes process which places a greater emphasis on priorities and achievable goals.

"We continue to bring greater accuracy, transparency, strategy, and accountability to our City's finances," said Mayor Nicola Smith. "Our Finance Team continues to be great stewards of our City's assets, aligning our financial policies with industry best practices and providing our community with clear and easy to understand budget documents."

The award winning budget book can be viewed online or a printed copy can be made available for viewing at City Hall. The City of Lynnwood Open Finance tool, is another way for community members to interact and explore details of the adopted budget.