ANN ARBOR, MI -- The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (TheRide) recently received the highest form of recognition in governmental budgeting by being presented with the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. This award was received for TheRide’s Fiscal Year 2019 Operating and Capital Budget. This is the second year in a row that the organization has received this prestigious award.
TheRide’s Board of Directors and John Metzinger, Deputy CEO, Finance and Administration, were presented the award during the September Board Meeting by Catherine McClary, Washtenaw County Treasurer.
“On behalf of TheRide’s Board of Directors, we would like to congratulate John Metzinger and his Finance team, along with the entire staff of TheRide, for receiving this honor in consecutive years. Their focus on transparency, quality and continuous improvement helps galvanize TheRide’s commitment to its ridership and the entire community,” said Eric Mahler, Chair of TheRide’s Board of Directors.
To receive the budget award, the budget had to satisfy a number of nationally recognized guidelines and receive a rating of “proficient” in all four categories to receive the award. The categories are:
- A policy document
- A financial plan
- An operations guide
- A communications device
“We’re proud to have won this award for the second year in a row,” Matt Carpenter, CEO for TheRide said. “We’ve made strides to modernize our budgeting procedures and we are honored to be recognized for these efforts.” At the same meeting, TheRide Board of Directors also adopted their Fiscal Year 2020 Operating and Capital Budget set to begin October 1, 2019.
The latest information on TheRide’s routes, schedules and detours is available at 734-996-0400 and on TheRide.org.