The McAllen Independent School District Business Office has added another chapter to its long tradition of excellence. The district recently earned a prestigious international award for its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for the 12th consecutive year.
This is the highest recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
“This major award recognizes the outstanding work and dedication of our Business Office staff,” McAllen ISD Superintendent Dr. J.A. Gonzalez, said. “They do an amazing job keeping the district running smoothly while maintaining a sharp eye on the public’s dollar. Ultimately, their efforts and expertise benefit our community’s children.”
The Certificate has been awarded to McAllen ISD by Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for the district’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR).
“The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting,” Michele Mark Levine, GFOA Technical Services Director, wrote in a letter. “Congratulations … for having satisfied the high standards of the program.”
The ACFR has been judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program, including going beyond the minimum requirements of generally accepted accounting principles to prepare the ACFR that evidence the spirit of transparency and full disclosure. The goal of the program is to ensure that users of our financial statements have the information they need to assess the financial health of the district. The award is for the fiscal year which ended June 30, 2021. The Certificate program began in 1945.
Not only has the district earned this distinction for 12 straight years but it has earned many other awards for its Business and Purchasing practices which exemplify the district’s effective management of the taxpayers’ dollars and transparency. This includes:
- Earning the state’s highest mark by TEA’s School FIRST (Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas), 18 times in 19 years (including 14 perfect scores).
- Recognized for excellence in budget presentation with the Meritorious Budget Award (MBA) for the 2021–22 budget year. This is the seventh straight year (2016-22) McAllen ISD has been recognized for its comprehensive budget presentation. The award has come from the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) for budget years 2017-18 through 2021-22 while the district had previously received the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for budget years 2015-16 and 2016-17.
- Maintaining a high credit rating from a major credit-rating service (Moody’s).
- Earned Transparency Stars from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts in Debt Obligations for exemplary efforts in creating financial transparency around public debt and the Transparency Star in the area of traditional finances for exemplary efforts in creating financial transparency around public services and spending decisions.
- Awarded the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement (AEP) for eighth time in nine fiscal years (2013-18, 2020-21) from the National Procurement Institute, Inc. This is an international award (US & Canada).
- The Texas Association of School Business Officials (TASBO) has presented the Award of Merit for Purchasing Operations to McAllen ISD five times including the last two consecutive years. The Award of Merit recognizes Texas school districts that are committed to following professional standards in the acquisition of goods and services. McAllen ISD has won this award in 2014, ’15, ’16, ’21 and ’22.
On GFOA
Based in Chicago, the Government Finance Officers Association is a professional association of approximately 19,000 state, provincial and local government finance officers in the United States and Canada.