What criteria must work units meet according to the Budget Manual issued by the CAO?

The criterion that work units must meet according to the Budget Manual issued by the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) being expressed in monetary terms is critical because budgeting inherently involves financial management. When work units are articulated in monetary terms, it allows for clear communication of costs and facilitates the evaluation of financial performance and resource allocation. This monetary expression helps in understanding the financial implications of the work being performed and allows for a more straightforward comparison of costs across different units or departments.

Budgeting in monetary terms ensures that all stakeholders can assess the efficiency and effectiveness of resource use, track expenditures, and justify budgetary requests. It underlines the importance of financial accountability and helps guide decision-making processes in the organization. By having a monetary basis, it also allows for setting clear financial targets and performance measures, aligning work units with the overall financial goals of the organization.

Other criteria such as being countable, reflecting work effort, or having consistency are also important in the context of budget formulation and evaluation, but they do not emphasize the core necessity of reflecting financial implications, which is why expressing work units in monetary terms is the defining criterion in this context.