Updated GFOA Budget Award Criteria: What You Need To Know For 2025

For public sector organizations with fiscal years starting on or after January 1, 2025, GFOA is rolling out updated criteria that reflect the evolving landscape of public sector budgeting.

While there aren’t major structural changes to the criteria, there are important updates with the addition of best-practice links in the Explanation of Criteria document, updated terminology, and enhanced digital engagement guidelines. 

Key Updates At A Glance

The refreshed criteria include several noteworthy changes that align with modern budgeting practices:

Streamlined Submission Process

GFOA has updated its Detailed Criteria Location Guide with a refreshed look, making it easy to follow the steps as you fill out the document. The updated Detailed Criteria Location Guide also now explicitly states that governments using online budget books can:

• Use section titles or links instead of traditional page numbers when completing the guide
• Submit their digital budget book as a URL in their GFOA application

This functionality makes the submission process much more streamlined for governments using web-based budget documents. For ClearGov Digital Budget Book users, this process is even simpler—our platform automatically generates a shareable, interactive web link that can be submitted directly as part of your GFOA application.

Enhanced Digital Communication

Budget Overview (Section C2 in the Criteria Location Guide)

• GFOA now recognizes social media, dashboards, videos, and other digital tools as effective methods for helping readers quickly understand major budgetary items and trends (revenues, expenditures, and capital). This means governments can use dynamic content to better explain their budget’s key points and changes.
  
  For example:
  • The Town of Woodbridge, Connecticut effectively uses social media links in its library department budget to enhance community engagement
  • The City of Claremore, Oklahoma incorporates video content in its budget transmittal letter to better communicate key messages

Understandability and Usability (C6)

• The requirement to download website-based budget documents as PDFs has been removed. Additionally, the links to GFOA’s best practices—Making the Budget Document Easier to Understand and Website Posting of Financial Documents—have been updated.

Modernized Terminology and Standards

Glossary (C4)

• Outdated accounting terms were removed to align with current GAAP standards for state and local governments. These updates ensure budget language is aligned with current GAAP and make the document easier for everyone to understand.
  • Example: “Capital lease” and “operating lease” consolidated to simply “leases”
  • Example: “Agency fund” updated to “custodial fund”

Basis of Budgeting (F2)

• There is a new emphasis on ensuring consistency between the basis of budgeting used in budget documents and audited financial statements. The update also includes a new link to GFOA’s best practice document, Basis of Accounting versus Budgetary Basis.

Fund Balance (F5)

• The term “net position” is now included. Additionally, new links have been added for the documents: Fund Balance Guidelines for the General Fund and Working Capital Targets for Enterprise Funds.

Statistical/Supplemental Section (C3)

• The term “ACFR” has been added to align with current terminology. Additionally, the link to the GFOA’s best practice on The Statistical/Supplemental Section of the Budget Document has been updated.

Updated Best Practice Links

Several sections of the 2025 Explanation of Criteria document have been updated with links to GFOA’s latest best practices, including:

Strategic Goals and Strategies (P1)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Strategic Planning

Financial Policies (P3)

• Updated links to GFOA’s best practice documents: (1) Adopting Financial Policies, (2) Long-Term Financial Planning, (3) Multi-Year Capital Planning, (4) Establishing Government Charges and Fees, (5) Debt Management Policy, (6) Fund Balance Guidelines for the General Fund, (7) Working Capital Targets for Enterprise Funds, (8) Enterprise Risk Management, and (9) Establishing an Effective Grants Policy

Budget Process (P4)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Public Engagement in the Budget Process

Long-Range Operating Financial Plans (F7)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Long-Term Financial Planning and Strategic Planning

Revenues (F6)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Financial Forecasting in the Budget Preparation Process

Capital Program (F8)

• Updated links to GFOA’s best practice documents: (1) Capitalization Thresholds for Capital Assets, (2) Estimated Useful Lives of Capital Assets, (3) Capital Budget Presentation, and (4) Multi-Year Capital Planning

Position Summary (O3) 

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Effective Budgeting of Salary and Wages

Departmental/Program Descriptions (O4)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Departmental Presentation in the Operating Budget Document

Performance Measures (O6)

• Updated link to GFOA’s best practice document on Performance Measures

How ClearGov Makes GFOA Award Success Simple

ClearGov’s Digital Budget Book—the industry’s first website-based solution—automates most of the budget book creation process using templates and data-driven charts and tables. Our solution not only makes your budget book easy to create and highly customizable, but also delivers it as an easy-to-navigate website that engages your residents with interactive content.

Digital Budget Book has been purpose-built to align with GFOA’s criteria, including these latest updates. Our platform offers:

• Built-in GFOA award criteria checklist
• Automated generation of key required sections
• One-click PDF generation
• ADA-compliant, interactive web-based format
• Easy integration of social media and video content
• Multi-language support

The submission process couldn’t be simpler:

1. Use our built-in GFOA award criteria checklist to ensure compliance
2. Submit your budget book’s web link in your application
3. Or generate a beautiful PDF electronic version with just one click

By using ClearGov, you have a foolproof way to meet and exceed every GFOA award requirement!

Many ClearGov Digital Budget Book customers have already earned a GFOA Distinguished Budget Presentation Award—and the new criteria makes our digital-first approach more relevant than ever.

Ready to Create an Award-Winning Budget?

With GFOA’s emphasis on digital presentation and accessibility, there’s never been a better time to modernize your budget document. These changes recognize that modern constituents expect dynamic, interactive, easy-to-understand ways to access their government’s finances.

Schedule a quick demo to see how ClearGov’s Digital Budget Book can help you create an award-winning budget presentation that engages your community while saving your team countless hours.