Texas Border Business
EDINBURG – The Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District Finance Department recently earned an “A” or Superior rating in financial accountability and the nationally acclaimed Financial Reporting Achievement Award.
According to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), the School Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST) is designed to encourage public schools to better manage their financial resources and to provide the maximum allocation possible for direct instructional purposes.
Ratings for the 2018-2019 school year are based on annual financial reports provided to TEA by districts and charter schools for the 2018 fiscal year. The financial accountability system requires TEA to review the audited financial reports from all districts and charters.
A school district or open-enrollment charter is assigned one of four possible letter grades (A, B, C or F), as well as a coinciding financial management rating (Superior, Above Standard Achievement, Meets Standard or Substandard Achievement).
“For 17 consecutive years, our Finance Department has received the FIRST Superior award, which is the highest rating possible in the state,” said ECISD Interim Superintendent Gilbert Garza. “Our high financial rating is due to our hard-working financial staff members whose efforts have also awarded us the national Financial Reporting Achievement Award for four years in a row.”
The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) awarded the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the Finance Department for its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the 2018-2019 fiscal year.
According to GFOA, the award is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management. The report was judged by an impartial panel to meet the high standards of the program, including demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the report.
To learn more about these ratings and awards, visit the Edinburg CISD Financial Transparency page at https://www.ecisd.us/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1309653&type=d&pREC_ID=1529247.
