Hudson, Colorado
A Small Town Revamps Its Budgeting With a Full Suite of Cloud-Based Budgeting Tools

Primary Objective

Deploying an integrated system to enhance financial transparency and internal communication

To modernize and streamline budgeting and reporting processes with tools that improve accuracy, reduce manual effort, and enhance communication with internal stakeholders and the public.

Background

A One-Person Budgeting Team

The Town of Hudson is a small municipality in northeastern Colorado with a population of approximately 1,800 residents. Kimberly Brown, Hudson’s Finance Director, joined the town about two and a half years ago after working in other public finance roles. 

Brown functions as Hudson’s sole finance employee, handling everything from accounting to budgeting and beyond. As a department of one, she needed a solution that would reduce inefficiencies while improving accuracy and accessibility.

Challenge

Disconnected Systems and Manual Errors Made Budgeting Difficult

Before adopting ClearGov, Hudson managed its budget entirely through disconnected spreadsheets and Word documents. Each component — operating budgets, personnel costs, and capital requests—was handled in separate files. 

This process was slow, error-prone, and difficult to update. A last-minute change to one number could ripple through the budget and be missed in other sections. With limited staff and resources, Hudson’s lack of a centralized, integrated budgeting system created operational risks and placed an unsustainable burden on its sole finance professional.

ClearGov helps me a lot, because I don’t have staff to help me. It is my staff.

Solution

An All-in-One Budgeting Platform

Having managed budgeting through spreadsheets for years, she knew exactly what she needed: a centralized system that could eliminate inconsistencies, reduce duplication, and help her build an accessible, transparent budget document.

After being introduced to ClearGov, Brown immediately recognized the value of the platform. She opted to bring on ClearGov’s full suite from the start: Operational Budgeting, Capital Budgeting, Personnel Budgeting, Digital Budget Book, and Transparency. Brown appreciated the flexibility to build the budget holistically and ensure every department’s input would live in one connected system. 

Implementation

A Smooth, Self-Paced Rollout with ClearGov’s Support

Implementation took six to eight weeks, during which Brown balanced the onboarding with her regular responsibilities, including the town’s audit. ClearGov’s learning resources — particularly the online training videos and live virtual classes — proved to be a critical support structure. She described the process as intuitive and efficient, allowing her to learn by doing.

After Brown onboarded, she worked with ClearGov’s customer support to help department heads learn the system. Adoption was quick, and she appreciated the interface’s ease of navigation.

I learn by doing. I did all the online ClearGov trainings, and those are helpful, because you can always go back to them. I also did a couple of the classes that ClearGov staff would host live online. The learning experience was nice, because I could watch a video for a little while and then do it.

Results

Tangible Gains in Time Savings, Accuracy, and Public Engagement

Implementation took six to eight weeks, during which Brown balanced the onboarding with her regular responsibilities, including the town’s audit. ClearGov’s learning resources — particularly the online training videos and live virtual classes — proved to be a critical support structure. She described the process as intuitive and efficient, allowing her to learn by doing.

ClearGov transformed Hudson’s budgeting process, saving time, reducing errors, and making the process more collaborative and transparent. The most significant impact was on personnel budgeting, where Brown could now run accurate compensation scenarios with built-in date assumptions.

Key Outcomes:

• 25% time savings compared to previous budgeting processes, with more time savings expected in future cycles.
• Improved personnel budget accuracy through scenario planning, COLA adjustments, and date-based merit increases.
• Better departmental collaboration with clear visibility into prior year budget data and automated reminders.
• The ability to break down broad accounts into sub-line items, allowing departments to budget for vendors and events more precisely.
• Historical data available in-line, improving forecasting and reducing the need for separate reports or spreadsheets.
• Eliminated formatting inconsistencies, freeing up time to focus on narrative, accuracy, and strategy.
• A more visually appealing and navigable budget book, improving public access and understanding of town finances.
• Growing public and council engagement, with council members referring residents to the digital budget book as a resource.

By moving from disjointed spreadsheets and Word docs to an integrated, cloud-based budgeting suite, Hudson turned an arduous, error-prone process into a streamlined, collaborative workflow that saves time, reduces errors, and elevates transparency. For small teams looking to do big things with limited resources, ClearGov makes modern budgeting not only possible — but easier.

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