Finance teams in local government juggle multiple responsibilities, often with limited employees and resources. And whether your municipality uses a decentralized or hybrid structure, managing finances can quickly become complex. Manual accounts payable (AP) processes only add to the challenge, creating silos across departments, limiting budget visibility, and increasing the risk of errors, fraud, and compliance issues.
In this blog, we explore how AP automation can simplify your workflows, strengthen control, increase visibility across departmental teams, and help your finance team enter 2026 with clarity and confidence.
Change Your Process with Confidence
Whether you’re the sole finance director in local government, or part of a lean team, we understand AP processes that have been in place for years, maybe decades, may seem like the best and only option.
Change can seem limited, or maybe there isn’t enough information around the possibilities of what AP processes can look like beyond Excel spreadsheets, printing and mailing paper checks, or sorting through filing cabinets.
Embracing new technology like AP automation doesn’t mean more work; it can mean increased efficiency, control, and security while managing public funds.
Help Save Time, Costs, and Boost Transparency Across Departments and Vendors
Manual AP tasks like data entry, routing invoices, and printing checks can slow your team down and increase the risk of errors. These outdated processes create silos and take valuable time away from higher-impact work serving your community.
A paper-based system can expose inefficiencies and delay approvals, but they’re also expensive and increase fraud risk. Mailing costs have risen 7.4% this year alone.
With AP automation, you can embrace modernized workflows and increased visibility into your entire process. AvidXchange enables invoice-approval paths that mirror your supply chain and finance hierarchies, so invoices can reach the right approvers without having to chase signatures down or duplicate efforts.
Each department, from Public Works to Parks and Recreation, can access the system, reduce vendor duplication, and streamline communication. Vendors (suppliers) are visible across departments, and each payment can be tied to purchase orders, contracts, or required documentation. That means funds are released only when all conditions are met, supporting compliance and cost control.
Transparency doesn’t stop with internal teams. AP automation allows vendors to view invoice status and payment timing, reducing the need for follow-up emails or calls while enhancing trust.
By modernizing your AP process, you can increase efficiency, lower operational costs, and build a more transparent, accountable financial workflow across every department and vendor.
Enhance Budget Forecasting, Audits, and Compliance
Don’t let budget planning or audit season feel overwhelming in 2026. With AP automation, your team gains the clarity and control needed to move through these critical periods.
By centralizing your invoice and payment data, AP automation gives you time-stamped visibility into spending across departments. That transparency can make it easier to track budgets, spot trends, and adjust before small issues become big problems.
"AvidXchange has helped us streamline our accounts payable process by eliminating manual data entry and reducing our reliance on paper invoices. It’s improved transparency in our approvals and payment tracking, which is especially important in a public-sector environment. The automation has saved time for our staff and helped us stay organized during busy budget and audit cycles.”
Digital workflows also replace manual spreadsheets and paper trails, making it easier to locate documents during audits and year-end closes. This can help improve efficiency, accuracy, and ensure nothing gets missed.
And because automation minimizes manual errors and delays, your data stays up to date, supporting more accurate forecasts and better resource planning.
With automated approval flows and role-based permissions in place, your team follows consistent processes, enforces policy adherence, and maintains a higher standard of compliance.
Implementation Tailored for Lean Teams
Adopting a new process may seem overwhelming, especially with a lean team. The good news is, AvidXchange designed implementation to be straightforward, flexible, and fully supported by people who understand your business.
AvidXchange integrates with more than 240 systems, helping you get up and running faster with fewer disruptions. Whether you’re automating invoices, payments, or both, our team is here to guide you from day one.
What to expect:
- 240+ integrations to fit your current tech stack, view the full list here
- Implementation in as little as 45 days*
- Unlimited users and approvers for every solution
- Dedicated onboarding support every step of the way
"The platform is easy to use, and the automation has really cut down on manual work and paper invoices. I also appreciate how responsive and helpful the AvidXchange team has been throughout implementation and beyond—they truly understand the needs of municipal finance departments.”
And once you’re live, AvidXchange is still here. You’ll have access to the AvidXchange Community to help read through best practices, product guidance, and ongoing answers whenever you need them.
To learn more on how AvidXchange can help streamline operations, strengthen compliance, and have your team do more with less, visit our AP for Government page.