The wait is over! Submissions for the 2026 STAR Awards are
officially open! With more than 50 categories, there are more
opportunities than ever to showcase your agency’s best work.
This year features exciting additions,
including Annual
Report/Budget, Interview/Talk
Show/Podcast, General Interest
Story, and State of the
City/County/Town. We’ve also expanded our social media
recognition with new categories for Best
Trending and Event
Promotion/Recap, along with three
dedicated Water categories.
Don’t miss your chance to be recognized! Start preparing
and submitting your entries today.
And mark your calendar: the STAR Awards ceremony returns to the
iconic Queen Mary on October
1 for an unforgettable day celebrating excellence
in public communications.
Winners announced at the STAR Awards Luncheon + Compact
Symposium aboard the iconic Queen Mary in Long Beach on October
1, 2026
SUBMIT AN ENTRY
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Eligibility Criteria:
All entries must be submitted by a local government, such as a
city, county, public school district, police, sheriff, or a
non-profit organization whose scope of programming includes
government access, or other entity serving local government
interests in California and Nevada. Each STAR Award is
granted only to the jurisdiction or organization, not to
individual contributors.
Videos must have originally aired or published online between
June 1, 2025 – May 8, 2026. Videos must have been created
in-house for all categories except those as noted under
Agency/Consultant categories.
All entries must be submitted individually through our online
entry form. On the entry form, include a link to the video.
(For example: YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Vimeo or your
channel’s On-Demand).
Categories and Operating Budget Breakdowns may be modified to
accommodate the number of entries received.
Entries Open: April 15
Early Bird Entry Deadline: May 15
Deadline to enter: 11:59 p.m. May 29, 2026
VIEW CATEGORIES | ENTRY RULES
Entry Fees
CAPIO Member Price:
$65 per entry – April 15 - May 15 (early bird)
$80 per entry – May 16 – 29
Non-Member Price: $95 per entry
Payment must be received by the entry deadline May 29, 2026.
