“Reflecting on Community,” the city’s well-rounded summary of all things Trail for the year of 2020, has won an award for annual financial reporting.
The goal of writing an engaging annual report, which features colourful photos of municipal highlights, is to motivate citizens of Trail to read content that in the past, was generally considered quite dry. This updated way of reporting finances renders municipal business a much more interesting and easy-to-follow read.
In fact, this is the fifth straight year the city has been recognized for its annual report by the Canadian Award for Financial Reporting (CAnFR) by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada.
The theme, reflecting on community, was chosen to represent all of Trail’s dedication and diligence to essential services while adapting to the challenges and restrictions of the pandemic.
“We are very proud to receive this award once again,” said Rino Merlo, the city’s interim chief financial officer and deputy finance director. “While it’s always our goal to provide the community accurate financials to align with the Community Charter and the Local Government Act, our team also aims to receive the award annually.”
The report includes detailed financial and statistical information, an engaging and informative introduction section that includes messages from Mayor Lisa Pasin and former Chief Administrative Officer David Perehudoff, project and community highlights, staff profiles, council’s strategic priorities, and municipal objectives.
The report was judged by impartial Canadian review committee members to meet the high standards of the program, while demonstrating a constructive spirit of full disclosure designed to clearly communicate the municipality’s financial story and to motivate potential user groups to read the report.
“Congratulations to the city staff who continue to produce an award-winning report,” said Mayor Lisa Pasin. “In addition to the financial information, the document really captures the city’s 2020 journey of challenges and successes. It’s apparent the team takes immense pride in their community and their work on the report; I encourage everyone to have a look.”
City of Trail finance and administration staff members assigned to the project, Merlo and Andrea Jolly, are already working on the content for the next report.
“It’s now time to focus on the 2021 year end and report details,” said Merlo. “Once it has been inspected by the public and approved by council, it will be submitted for consideration for the 2021 CAnFR award.”
The 2016 to 2020 annual reports can be viewed at www.trail.ca. Under the home page banner “Inside City Hall” click on annual reports.
Read more: Trail draws interest to ‘Annual Report’ with reader-friendly format
Read more: City of Trail pockets fourth financial reporting award
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