May 5, 2020 – West Bend, WI – The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to the City of West Bend by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the year ended December 31, 2018.
The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
“Thank you to the Government Finance Officers Association for recognizing the high-caliber work of the City of West Bend,” said Mayor Christophe E. Jenkins. “Our city can take pride in knowing its money is being managed at the highest levels of care and integrity.”
According to the GFOA website, the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting Program (CAFR Program) was established 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.
“The City of West Bend is committed to transparent financial reporting,” said City Administrator Jay Shambeau. “This award is a testament to the work that’s completed on a daily basis by the Finance Department, in particular Finance Administrator Carrie Winklbauer. She and her team truly go above and beyond!”
“Thank you to Amy Miller and Julie Wolf for collaborating on this comprehensive report,” said Winklbauer. “This is the City’s first CAFR. We were able to successfully complete it with the guidance of Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP, and the support of the Mayor and Common Council.”
The CAFR was judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program, which includes demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR. The City of West Bend’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the Year Ended December 31, 2018, can be accessed here.