Harris County Department of Education’s (HCDE) Business Services earned the “Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Financial Reporting” (PAFR Award) for its annual financial report for the fiscal year ending Aug. 31, 2023.

This marks the 17th consecutive year HCDE has earned this distinction.

Awarded through the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) and its Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting Program, the honor is given to reports based on reader appeal, understandability, distribution methods, creativity and other elements. Reports are reviewed by three judges and any report with at least two of the three rating the entry as Partially Satisfy (3), Good (4) or Excellent (5) in all weighted categories at 20% or higher – reader appeal, understandability and overall impression – is granted the award.

Of the nine eligible scores, HCDE received eight “Good” marks and one “Excellent.” Reviewer comments included the report being well organized, easily understandable and helpful for readers to learn about the overall financial health of HCDE.