The Strong Towns Podcast The Keys to a Healthy City Finance Department With Shayne Kavanagh
Mar 24, 2025
Shayne Kavanagh, a Senior Manager of Research for the Government Finance Officers Association, shares valuable insights on local government finance. He discusses the crucial role of finance officers as 'decision architects' and offers innovative strategies for effective budgeting and financial reporting. The conversation delves into balancing short-term demands with long-term planning, the importance of bond ratings, and understanding complex financial reporting issues. Kavanagh emphasizes collaboration and transparency as key to enhancing city fiscal health.
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Reduce Budget Padding
- Address budget padding by pooling risk across departments.
- Create a centralized contingency fund to reduce overall padding and save millions.
Finance Officers as Decision Architects
- Finance officers are decision architects, shaping decision-making environments.
- They don't make decisions, but they influence them by how information is presented.
Budget Padding Example
- Departments often pad their budgets, expecting cuts.
- Target-based budgeting, where departments have fixed targets, discourages this practice.
