The City of Carrollton has been awarded all six Transparency Stars possible through the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Transparency Stars program.
The Texas Comptroller’s program recognizes local governments that have completed all requirements for going above and beyond in their transparency practices and expanding their transparency efforts by providing clear and meaningful financial information through documents, visualization, and other formats.
The program recognizes great breadth and depth in the information presented for each specific Transparency Star awarded, making each star a prestigious achievement.
“Financial transparency is a core value for the City of Carrollton, and this award demonstrates the City’s commitment to open government,” Mayor Steve Babick said.
“We hold ourselves to high standards in all departments and work hard to remain accountable to the public on how spending and budgetary issues are handled, and
continue to expand our best practices to ensure Carrollton remains the City that families and businesses want to call home.”
Carrollton was the first entity to be awarded a Traditional Finance Transparency Star in 2016 and the first entity to be recognized with four stars. With the receipt of the fifth star
in August and the sixth and final on Tuesday, September 30, Carrollton became the 13th local government in the state to be awarded all six stars in the current program.
The City has earned and maintained the following stars since their original award dates.
• Traditional Finances (March 2016) provides insight into revenues and expenditures, positions, and property tax information.
• Debt Obligations (August 2016) provides information related to total outstanding debt obligations and historical bond election information.
• Economic Development (August 2016) provides information on the City’s economic incentives agreements, related tax information, jobs created, and capital investments received for the agreements.
• Public Pensions (September 2016) provides insight into the City’s funding ratio, amortization, rates of return, unfunded actuarial accrued liabilities, and determined contribution rates.
• Open Government & Compliance (August 2025) provides information related to total outstanding debt obligations and historical bond election information.
• Contracts & Procurement (September 2025) provides information related to service with customers and vendors, as well as transparency with the public by
implementing and supporting processes that provide timely, cost-effective, and high-quality contracts, and expenditure reports.
“Transparency remains a primary focus for the department as we continue to be outstanding stewards of City Resources,” Carrollton Director of Finance Melissa Everett said. “The state comptroller’s office reviews and audits each city’s transparency information annually to ensure the required criteria is being met in every area and may revoke an award should they determine an awardee’s transparency information no longer meets the criteria or is no longer in keeping with the program’s goals and intent.”
The City’s website is equipped with the latest fiscal year’s budget, check register, comprehensive annual financial report, unclaimed funds and property, and debt information. In addition, there are up to seven years of past annual budgets available.
The financial reports provided on the City’s website give taxpayers a transparent look at where their money goes.
For a high-level, easy-to-read compilation of the City’s budgetary and financial status, a digital version of the latest 2024 Popular Annual Financial Report, or PAFR, is available for review on the City’s website at cityofcarrollton.com/accounting. It includes not only financial information, but also a community profile, an overview of Carrollton’s activities and accomplishments from the past year, a look ahead at exciting local developments, and trend data for Texas municipalities.
For a deeper insight into the City’s strong fiscal performance and responsible spending practices, visit cityofcarrollton.com/finance.
