GOVT 462 Budget Project
Liberty GOVT 462 Budget Project Answers
Select a local city or county government, state agency, or a nonprofit organization (except schools systems or districts) and prepare an analysis of its budgeting procedures using the following guidelines. It is strongly suggested to select a unit of government or a non-profit in the area where you live. There is a 2,500-word word count, and the student must have a minimum of 5 scholarly sources in current MLA format that are no older than 5 years old.
Part I. The budget process/document
Discuss in detail the process for preparing and approving your organization’s budget. Examples of issues to be addressed include the following:
- Who prepares revenue forecasts and when?
- Do they have budget policies?
- How often are they reviewed?
- Where is the budget office/function located?
- What are the qualifications of the staff?
- Evaluate the budget guidelines.
- Are they available online?
- What kinds of conflicts appear to permeate the process?
- How well does the organization manage conflict?
- What is the role of the legislative body/governing board?
- How are their policy priorities integrated into budget decisions?
- How are citizens/stakeholders involved in the budget process?
- What recommendations would you offer to improve budget deliberations?
- Discuss the performance measures used in the budget process.
- What kind of budget is prepared?
- How are revenues and expenses estimated?
Part II. Overall recommendations
Identify the top 3–5 things this organization can/should do to improve its budget process and documentation. Be realistic when offering recommendations. Are there sufficient resources (time, money, knowledge and skills) to support your recommendations?
Most of the information will come from reviewing the budget documentation that you collect, interviews with key participants, and website analyses. For larger organizations, you may want to focus on 1–2 departments.