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There’s Still Time to Register for AGA's PDC in New Orleans

If you have already registered for the 58th Annual Professional Development Conference & Exposition (PDC), we look forward to seeing you. You’ve made a smart investment in yourself and your organization.

But if you have not yet registered, don’t worry… there’s still time! Register today to guarantee your spot at this one-of-a-kind education, training and networking event. And advance registration means we’ll have a name badge ready upon your arrival to ensure a smooth check-in onsite.

In today’s challenging economic times, now more than ever, government financial managers and accountability professionals must stay abreast of the latest developments, policies and issues affecting our citizens, and continually enhance their skills. Staying up to date on new regulations, while maintaining a clear vision of government transformation, can be accomplished through the best training.

AGA’s PDC offers a cost-effective way of doing just that. Earn 24 CPE hours, hear from first-rate speakers, share best practices, discuss the latest research, discover innovative management techniques, and see technological tools that can help your agency achieve its mission. From the practical to the theoretical, sessions will help attendees hone their skills to bring greater efficiency and effectiveness to government operations.

The PDC Program is now available online! View the agenda to see the complete list of top-notch speakers, outstanding education sessions and unforgettable networking events offered at this year’s conference.

In addition to an excellent technical program, the PDC provides ample opportunities to network, make new friends, and let the good times roll. While you're here, we invite you to indulge your senses, savor New Orleans’ rich cultural experience and enjoy the food, music, arts, history and nightlife the city has to offer.

We’re working hard to make your stay in the Crescent City an enjoyable and memorable one. As you plan your trip, be sure to check out some of the Big Easy’s most popular attractions.

Jazz It Up With AGA—Register Today!

Upcoming Audio Conferences

2009–2010 Audio Conference Schedule

Training Opportunities

An Exclusive Offer for AGA Chapters and ADVANTAGE Group Member Agencies—Discounted Audio Conferences
AGA is pleased to again announce a special offer exclusively for AGA chapters and ADVANTAGE group membership agencies. For a limited time only, purchase four, five or six AGA audio conferences as a package and you will receive a 10 percent discount on the early-bird price offered by the AGA. Purchase seven, eight or nine AGA audio conferences for a 15 percent discount. Purchase 10, 11 or 12 audio conferences for a whopping 20 percent discount.

This offer is only available to AGA chapters and ADVANTAGE group membership partners until July 8, 2009. Contact Maria Lucas at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 308, with questions or to register. Download the registration form.

The audio conference series has been a huge success over the past few years. With thousands of participants earning two CPE hours for each program, AGA now offers practically monthly audio conferences that provide chapters and group membership agencies a cost-effective and convenient way to provide quality education for members and others in the government accountability profession.

Questions about any of the audio conferences? Contact Raymond Harris, CGFM, Director of Chapter Operations and Audio Conference Producer, at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 339.

Not sure what is involved in becoming an ADVANTAGE group membership agency? Visit our website for details.

This Week on the AGA Blog
Monday: Sheila Weinberg, CEO for the Institute for Truth in Accounting

Friday: Robert Maitner Jr., CGFM, Senior Managing Consultant, IBM Public Sector Financial Management

AGA Needs You on the Blog! Come share your opinions with the AGA community! Contact Marie Force to book your day on the AGA Blog.

June 8, 2009 • News from the Profession

AGA Today is Brought to You by AGA Corporate Partner Clifton Gunderson

Clifton Gunderson’s offices in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, MD, and Arlington, VA, are seeking experienced professionals to join our public sector practice. Ideal candidates will have 3+ yrs of Public Accounting or equivalent audit experience along with a BA/BS in Accounting/IT/IS, CPA, CGFM, CISA and/or CISSP. Duties will include audits of Federal entities, State & Local audits (GASB), A-133 audits, and compliance auditing. To apply please e-mail Michael.Armstrong@cliftoncpa.com

Tracking Jobs Created Under Recovery Act Could be Tricky
How many workers does it take to steady a floundering economy? If those workers are getting paid through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Obama administration is betting about 6.8 million. That's the administration's estimate for the number of jobs created or saved over the next four years as a result of the $787 billion economic stimulus plan signed into law in February. But documenting that number may require some fancy accounting. Ed DeSeve, special adviser to the president and the Office of Management and Budget for implementing the Recovery Act, said on Thursday that it will be up to fund recipients to estimate the number of jobs created or saved. "We believe [the number of] direct jobs created should be defined by the recipients themselves," said DeSeve, speaking at a breakfast sponsored by the Association of Government Accountants in Washington, D.C. — Katherine McIntire Peters, Government Executive. Read more.

Untangling the Recovery; Government Gets One More Shot at Proving It Can Get the Job Done
Many people see the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as an opportunity to prop up a faltering economy, spur long-term investments in energy and education, and put millions of unemployed citizens back to work. For the nation's 2.7 million federal employees, the stimulus plan represents a more personal mission. It is a chance for redemption, to convince the rest of the world that the government still can operate as an efficient and effective management organization. —Robert Brodsky, Government Executive. Read more.

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SEC Chief Strives To Rebuild Regulator; Scrutiny Intensified In Financial Crisis
On the morning of Feb. 4, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mary Schapiro, sat in a confidential meeting reviewing financial crime cases when an assistant handed her a note. Schapiro read it and then asked everyone in the room to leave, except for her fellow commissioners and their aides. She learned that top SEC officials had just been pilloried at a House committee hearing on the agency's failure to detect Bernard Madoff's massive fraud. When the officials refused to answer questions about the case, one lawmaker lamented that the SEC had acted like it had been "anointed by God to be all righteous." With the room cleared, Schapiro asked whether, before her arrival eight days earlier, the agency had placed legal limits on what officials could tell Congress. It had not. Then, she immediately phoned the committee leaders and wrote a letter promising "a full accounting, both of Mr. Madoff's activities and why we did not detect the fraud." —Zachary A. Goldfarb, The Washington Post. Read more.

States' Budget Woes Are Poised to Worsen
State budgets look bad now, but they are set to get worse. The bulk of funds from the federal government's stimulus package will be allocated by 2011, but tax collections aren't likely to be enough to take their place -- even if the economy is recovering. The drop in tax revenue is set to be deeper and last longer as collections have become more sensitive to business cycles in recent years. At the same time, states face growing health-care costs and the need to replenish pension programs funded by decimated investments. And some of the stimulus funds expand programs that will require state money to sustain them after the federal largesse runs out. —Amy Merrick, The Wall Street Journal. Read more.

AGA Today is Brought to You by AGA Corporate Partner Graduate School
Conducting Quality Analysis for Decision Support

Make sure that the quality of information used as evidence is strong and defensible—this advanced course shows you more detailed ways to collect and analyze information in decision support work.

September 8–10, 2009 in Washington, D.C.
Register online or call us at (888) 744-GRAD.

DHS IG Reports Millions Recovered from Fraud
The Homeland Security Department’s inspector general, Richard L. Skinner, has recovered $228 million in fines, restitutions, cost savings and other payments from investigations conducted from March 2003 through September 2008, according to a special report the IG released Wednesday. The IG’s office received 59,829 complaints of alleged waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer funds at DHS during that time, and the majority came through a hotline number, the report states. In that time, the complaints resulted in 2,014 arrests and 1,458 convictions. In 2008, the IG investigated about 11,000 complaints and recovered $52 million, the report states. —Alice Lipowicz, Federal Times. Read more.

Richard L. Skinner is featured in two educational sessions at AGA's PDC on Monday, June 22 and Tuesday, June 23.

Correction—In the April Federal Accounting Corner, I stated “Federal agencies have to follow private-sector GAAP where not superseded by federal guidance.” This sentence is an oversimplification and should be ignored. The article should have attributed FASAB guidance instead of SFAS 154 as its primary source. I apologize for any confusion this may have caused. —Simcha Kuritzky, CGFM, CPA.

AGA Today is Brought to You by Real Asset Management International
Real Asset Management International is a provider of GASB compliant fixed asset management software. RAMI's Government4000 integrates virtually every aspect of fixed asset management. Visit RAMI at the GFOA Conference in Seattle, WA at Booth #913. Request your free Government4000 info pack or contact us directly at solution@realassetmgt.com or 617-342-7291.

GASB Marks 25th Anniversary
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is marking a quarter-century as the private, independent accounting and financial reporting standards-setter for state and local governments. Since 1984, the GASB has developed standards that result in transparent financial reporting, which helps governments to demonstrate their stewardship over the resources entrusted to them. You will see coverage of the events marking the occasion, including a roundtable of current and former GASB members, in the fall issue of The Journal of Government Financial Management. The GASB would like to thank all of its constituents for participating in its due process and looks forward to continuing this partnership as the Board works toward improving accountability and well-informed decision making well into the future.

FASAB Seeks Comments on Technical Bulletin
The Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) has released an exposure draft of Technical Bulletin 2009-1, Deferral of the Effective Date of Technical Bulletin 2006-1, Recognition and Measurement of Asbestos-Related Cleanup Costs. The purpose of this proposed technical bulletin is to defer the effective date of Technical Bulletin 2006-1, Recognition and Measurement of Asbestos-Related Cleanup Costs, for two years to provide federal agencies with additional time to resolve implementation issues. The exposure draft requests comments by July 17, 2009. If adopted, the effective date of Technical Bulletin 2006-1 would be changed to periods beginning after September 30, 2011. Copies of the exposure draft are available at the FASAB website.

Audio Conference Set on Using Performance Measures to Manage Government Services
AGA is pleased to announce its latest audio conference, worth 2 CPE hours, on using performance measures to improve operations, set for 2 – 3:50 p.m. EST on July 15.

A new research project, Using Performance Measures to Improve State and Local Governments’ Service Delivery, will determine the extent to which performance measures are being used in government to improve services, regardless of the level of government. The project will follow up with successful practices in applying these techniques to achieve performance goals and provide quantifiable value.

Join Harold (Hal) I. Steinberg, CGFM, CPA, lead researcher and former first Deputy Controller/Acting Controller, Office of Federal Financial Management, Office of Management and Budget, and two government experts who will share their failed attempts and successful experiences.

Cost: $249 per site (UNLIMITED ATTENDANCE) if you register on or before Friday, July 10, 2009 and $299 thereafter. SPECIAL PROMOTION: Government agencies and CPAG members who register five or more offices will receive a 20 percent discount ($200 per site)

To Register:1) Register online 2) Print the registration form or Special Promotion Registration and fax it to 703.684.6933

If you have any questions regarding registration, please contact Maria Lucas at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 308. Questions regarding the program should be directed to Raymond Harris, CGFM, at ext. 339.

Plans Under Way for September Fraud Conference
Join AGA at its Fourth Annual Internal Control & Fraud Conference, set for Sept. 16–17 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. Hear from leaders in government, academia and private industry discuss latest discovery techniques and lessons learned from various schemes; how poor internal controls can lead to fraud, waste and abuse; and how different levels of government are cooperating to improve services to citizens. The conference will also cover various aspects of the Recovery Act from an internal control and fraud perspective. Earn 14 CPE hours.
Speakers include:

Neil Barofsky, Special Inspector General, Troubled Asset
Relief Program, U.S. Department of the Treasury
Thomas M. Davis III, Former U.S. Congressman (Invited)
Earl E. Devaney, Chairman, Recovery Act Transparency
and Accountability Board
Phyllis K. Fong, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Arthur A. Hayes, CGFM, CPA, Director of State Audit,
Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury, State of Tennessee
U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (Invited)
Danny Werfel, Deputy Controller, Office of Federal Financial Management, U.S. Office of Management and Budget

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