City of Stonecrest’s Finance Department receives top award

The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting was awarded to the City of Stonecrest by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR).  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.

In conjunction with the GFOA award, Mayor Jason Lary and City Manager Michael Harris presented an Award of Financial Reporting Achievement to City Accounts Manager Audrey Mays at last night’s City Council meeting. Mays and Harris worked on the CAFR with representatives from Mauldin and Jenkins, the city’s external auditing firm.

“I feel great.  The CAFR is a great recognition, especially for our first year.  We were in total compliance with the high standards set by the Government Finance Officers Association. Usually, cities don’t do CAFRs until they are about five years old.  We intend on doing a CAFR every year as we have set our standards high,” Mays said.

The CAFR was judged by an impartial panel to meet the program’s high standards which include, demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the CAFR.