The City of Burbank has been recognized for its commitment to financial transparency and accountability, receiving two prestigious honors from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA).
Burbank earned the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-24 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and the Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Financial Reporting for its FY 2023-24 Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR). Both reports were evaluated by independent panels and judged to meet the highest standards in public financial reporting.
“Our team takes great pride in upholding Burbank’s long-standing tradition of financial excellence,” said Financial Services Director Jennifer Becker. “These awards are a testament to the dedication of our staff and their commitment to consistent, clear, and accessible financial reporting.”
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting, established by GFOA in 1945, is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting. The PAFR Award was introduced in 1991 to encourage accessible and visually engaging financial reports to the general public without a background in public finance. The recognition underscores the City’s efforts to make financial information understandable to a broad audience.
The GFOA represents more than 25,000 public finance officials throughout the United States and Canada and promotes excellence in government finance through best practices, professional development, and resources. For more information about GFOA and its award programs, visit www.gfoa.org.
Thank you for sharing.
The claim is accurate, but the awards mainly recognize report formatting and disclosure standards. They do not prove overall transparency or fiscal health. Use them cautiously in arguments about openness.
Evidence check
– Burbank announced on Nov 4, 2025 that it received GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for its FY 2023–24 ACFR and a PAFR award.
– GFOA describes the COA as recognition for going beyond minimum GAAP to evidence “full disclosure” and timeliness. It is programmatic, not an audit opinion.
– GFOA’s PAFR program rewards accessible summaries for lay readers.
What the awards do indicate
– The city produced an ACFR that met GFOA’s disclosure and presentation criteria and submitted it on time.
– The city produced a readable PAFR consistent with GFOA guidance.
What the awards do not indicate
– They do not certify fiscal condition, solvency, or policy performance. They assess reporting quality.
– They do not replace the independent auditor’s opinion in the ACFR. (GFOA awards are separate from audits.)
– Research finds certificate decisions relate to report quality; they are not a blanket signal of “good finances.”
Neutral transparency baseline (why this may or may not matter)
– In California, transparency is a legal floor: the Public Records Act (Gov. Code § 7920.000 et seq.) mandates access to records unless exempt; compliance is required regardless of awards.
– Open meetings are governed by the Brown Act (Gov. Code § 54950 et seq.). Again, mandatory regardless of awards.
Practical value assessment
– Stakeholders who might care: rating analysts, institutional investors, civic groups, local media, and grantors. For them, COA/PAFR can be a positive process signal and a convenience for reading the numbers.
– Limits: awards are common among well-resourced agencies; marginal impact on day-to-day transparency disputes or record access. They provide weak leverage if you are arguing about delayed or redacted PRA responses, or about whether data will be released proactively. Statutory duties govern those outcomes.
Neutral Point of View
– Awards like GFOA’s COA and PAFR show Burbank meets recognized best practices for financial reporting and readability. They do not constrain or expand the City’s legal obligations under the California Public Records Act or the Brown Act, which require disclosure and open meetings regardless of awards.
Bottom line
– Use the awards as a narrow credibility marker for reporting quality and timeliness.
– Do not present them as proof of transparency compliance or fiscal strength.
– For disputes on access or openness, cite CPRA and the Brown Act, not GFOA awards.
Opinion
Transparency is required by law. We acknowledge the hard work of City of Burbank staff and note the following:
– Burbank ranks #10 out of 482 incorporated cities and towns for highest combined sales tax at 10.5%, while hundreds of California municipalities are at or below 8.5%.
– Burbank ranks #10 out of 482 cities and towns for lodging tax at 10%.
– Burbank’s overtime share is approaching 20% of total wages paid.
Many City employees take home multiples of the annual salary of the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, and many more are paid higher compensation that the governor.
Respectfully submitted,
The Spencer Company
A Burbank-based business since 1989
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