Public Affairs 4030: Public Budgeting

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This is a sample syllabus to provide general information about the course and it's requirements. Course requirements are subject to change. This syllabus does not contain all assignment or course detail and currently enrolled students should reference the syllabus provided by their instructor. For a specific syllabus, please email us a request.

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Course Overview

3 Credit Hours
Modalities Available: In Person, Hybrid

Public budgets touch all of us and fund important services and benefits to citizens. The public budget represents policy decisions, and how those decisions are funded. This course prepares students for leadership roles within public, nonprofit and for-profit organizations through an understanding of the public budgeting process, reports, forecasting and analysis, policy issues and communication strategies.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course, students should understand:

  • The components of a budget and the different types of budget formats
  • The benefits and implications of each type of budget format
  • The budgeting process and its impact on policy
  • How leaders can use budgets to manage resources and accomplish goals

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

  • Describe and construct budgets using various methodologies
  • Describe the financial documents used by governments and the information communicated by each (i.e. how does a budget differ from an Annual Comprehensive Financial Report?)
  • Perform basic analyses of financial information, including budgetary calculations, cost allocation techniques, capital planning, and operational needs
  • Diagnose a government’s financial strengths and weaknesses
  • Communicate basic financial information to leadership, a legislative body, and community stakeholders

Requirements and Expectations

  • Class Participation 15%

  • Briefs (5 @ 5% each) 25%

  • Team Study (25%) and Presentation (5%) 30%

  • Final Individual Project – Budget Analysis 30%

A textbook and online readings may be required. Check your specific instructor's syllabus for information.

Class participation is essential for this course. Grading for class participation will be based on factors such as quality of participation, interest, and attendance. Multiple absences will negatively impact students’ ability to participate in the class, which will result in a lower grade.

Five briefs are assigned as part of this course. Briefs are to be approximately (1) page long, single-spaced, with one-inch margins and 12-point font. The use of bullet-points and headings/subheadings are encouraged as the goal of this assignment is to produce a “real-world” memo-style response to a public finance topic. Students should cite any references used to complete the brief on a second page.

Grades will be based on the following: 1) the overall quality of the brief, 2) the effort made to fully understand the topic, 3) how well the brief captured topics pertinent to the class or current events, and 4) the quality of the writing. Grammar, spelling, and the organization/flow of the papers will be considered in the grade.

A significant goal of this class is to prepare students to work in leadership positions in federal, state, and local government. This type of work requires preparing for and actively participating in meetings, asking questions, making public presentations, and working as part of a team.

For this assignment, you will form teams to fulfill an in-depth study of a local government’s budgetary practices and budget document. Teams will be established in class. The selection of cities, assignment instructions, and further information will be given in a handout in class. Each student is required to produce an approximately five (5) double-spaced paper (individually written) to fulfill this assignment. Each team is required to prepare and present a brief (five minute) presentation to the class followed by in-class Q&A.

You will demonstrate your ability to perform many of the skills that you will learn in this course. This project requires you to review an actual budget using the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) “Distinguished Budget” criteria.

Students will analyze a budget using the GFOA’s criteria, make assessments using traditional financial analysis tools as described in the text and in class, and offer recommendations to improve the budget document. Instructions and further information will be given in a handout. The final individual project will total approximately ten (10) double-spaced pages.

Weekly Schedule

Week 1:

  • Course Introduction - What is Public Budgeting?

Week 2:

  • The Budget’s Role in Government – History and Theories

  • The Federal Government

Week 3:

  • Who are the Players?
  • The Budget Cycle

Week 4: 

  • Revenues Part I: Income Taxes, Property Taxes, and other Revenues
  • Revenues Part II: Transaction-Based Revenues

Week 5:

  • Expenditures

Week 6:

  • The Economy
  • The Decision Process Begins

Week 7:

  • A Deep Dive into the Vetting Process
  • The Final Decision: The Role of the Legislative Body

Week 8:

  • The Outcome of All of This Work: The Budget Document

Week 9:

  • Communicating the Budget
  • Budget Execution

Week 10:

  • Budget Execution
  • Financial Management

Week 11:

  • Financial Management
  • Introduction to Capital Finance

Week 12:

  • Capital Finance
  • Introduction to Governmental Debt

Week 13:

  • Debt Management – Strategies and Principles
  • Intergovernmental Relations

Week 14:

  • Team-based presentations

Week 15:

  • Participatory Budgeting
  • The Future of Budgeting for Social Impact