Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) has awarded the second consecutive Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Reporting Award to the City of Paducah for its Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR).
Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) has awarded the Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Reporting Award to the City of Paducah for its Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. This is the second year for Paducah to create the PAFR and achieve the prestigious award. Paducah’s PAFR is a 12-page report that summarizes financial data in a user-friendly format to increase awareness and knowledge of Paducah’s operations.
In May, the City of Paducah received a separate award, the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting, for the much larger document known as the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR). The ACFR, which includes the City’s audit, is approximately 200 pages in length with the City receiving that award for 34 consecutive years.
“I am incredibly proud of our team for earning this award for the PAFR,” said Mayor George Bray. “It demonstrates our ongoing commitment to providing clear and accessible information to our citizens. The PAFR is a valuable tool for fostering trust and understanding within our community. Receiving this award for the second consecutive year shows that Paducah is successful in taking complex financial information and reducing it to a digestible format for the benefit of our citizens.”
The report was judged by an independent panel to meet the program’s high standards which include clearly communicating the City’s financial story. Judges reviewed the document’s understandability and reader appeal among other factors.
City Manager Daron Jordan said, "This award reflects the hard work and dedication of Paducah’s Finance Department. Their ability to translate complex financial data into a user-friendly format is essential for promoting civic engagement and responsible governance. We are committed to continuing this level of transparency. I’m honored to be part of the team that has achieved two of the prestigious awards through the Government Finance Officers Association, an organization known for its commitment in selecting only those entities that meet the highest standards in government reporting.”
“Unlike traditional, lengthy financial reports, the PAFR uses plain language, visuals, and concise summaries to communicate key financial information to residents,” said Finance Director Jonathan W. Perkins. “The report covers the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, and highlights Paducah's financial condition and operational results. I must thank City of Paducah Controller Audra Kyle for stepping up to the challenge to create the PAFR by taking complex financial data and reducing the information into this 12-page, visually appealing document. This award validates our efforts to live up the City’s organizational value of fiscal responsibility and inspires us to continue innovating in financial reporting."
In addition to providing the PAFR and the city’s audit on the website, the public can see weekly financial updates through the Paducah Open Finance financial transparency web portal. Visit Financial Transparency for more information.
Read the PAFR at the following link: Popular Annual Financial Report.
The GFOA established the Popular Annual Financial Reporting Awards Program (PAFR Program) in 1991 to encourage and assist state and local governments to extract information from their annual comprehensive financial report to produce high quality popular annual financial reports specifically designed to be readily accessible and easily understandable to the general public and other interested parties without a background in public finance and then to recognize individual governments that are successful in achieving that goal.
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