Budget books
Your adopted budget, as a book people actually read.
We turn the figures your finance office already has into a designed budget book: a print-ready PDF, an accessible PDF and a web page, plus the templates to do it again next year.
What you get
One set of figures, published every way residents look for them.
Everything below is part of one fixed fee, including the changes between the proposed and adopted budgets.
The full budget book
Proposed and adopted editions with a clear structure: transmittal letter, budget in brief, fund summaries, department pages, capital plan and appendices.
A budget in brief
Four pages that answer what residents ask most: where the money comes from, where it goes, what changed and what it means for their tax bill.
An accessible PDF
Tagged to WCAG 2.1 AA and PDF/UA, with headings, reading order, table headers and alt text for every chart, so it meets the ADA web rule.
A web page for your site
The budget in brief as a fast, plain web page that reads well on a phone and links to the full document.
Charts and tables, checked
Every chart is drawn from your figures, and every total is checked against your adopted budget before anything goes out.
Templates you keep
Next year’s book starts from this year’s. You get the files and the styles, whether your staff builds the next one or we do.
How it works
Built around your budget calendar.
This is a typical year for a July 1 fiscal year. We schedule around yours, and most of the work happens while your staff is busy with the numbers.
January
Kickoff
Send last year’s book and this year’s working figures. A spreadsheet, a finance-system export or a scan is fine.
February–March
Proposed edition
We lay out the book, chart the numbers and draft plain-language summaries. Your staff reviews one shared draft.
April–May
Amendments
As the governing body changes the budget, we update every figure and chart, usually within the week.
June
Adopted and published
A print-ready PDF, an accessible PDF and a web page for your site, all ready before July 1.
Built to the GFOA criteria
A budget that works as a policy document, a financial plan, an operations guide and a communications device.
Those are the four tests of the Government Finance Officers Association’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. We structure every book around them, so the document is clearer whether or not you apply, and an application is far easier if you do.
Budget
What we need from you
Less than you’d think.
We work from what your office already has. If last year’s book only exists on paper, a scan is enough to start.
- Last year’s budget document
- This year’s working figures, as a spreadsheet or a finance-system export
- Your budget calendar
- One contact in the finance office
- Your seal or logo, and any photos you’d like to use
Questions finance offices ask
What if the figures change after the proposed budget?
That’s expected. Changes up to adoption are part of the fixed fee, and we update every page and chart a change touches.
Do we need any special software?
No. We work from whatever you have: Excel, an export from your finance system, or a scan of last year’s book.
Can you keep our current look?
Yes. We can keep your structure, seal and colors and make the document clearer, or design a new look with you.
Who owns the files?
You do. You get the final PDFs, the web page and the editable templates, with no license to renew.
How is it priced?
As a fixed fee, based on the size of the document and what you need. We quote before any work begins, and the price doesn’t change when the governing body amends the budget.
Planning next year’s budget?
Tell us about your government and we’ll send a fixed quote within two business days.