Highlights
Training
Opportunities
 PDC
Program Available Online
Why wait? The conference program is here and ready for
printing. View the program to check out the complete list of speakers
and education sessions or find your room assignment. You can also use
the program to find specific exhibitors and learn more about this
year’s awards recipients. Take a sneak peek of
the program before arriving in Atlanta.
Atlanta Link
Airport Shuttle Discount for PDC Attendees
Ready to travel to AGA’s PDC in Atlanta? Getting
to the hotel is quick and easy… The Atlanta Link offers shuttle
service between Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and downtown
Atlanta. The cost per person is $16.50 one way and $29 round trip.
Since this is a shared ride service, shuttles may make several stops
before arriving at your hotel.
Save Time and Money Book Online: Receive
an additional $2 off the round trip fare when you purchase your ticket
online. To receive this discount, reserve your spot now.
Performance Reporting
Experiences Topic of Aug. 20 Audio Conference
AGA, in conjunction with the National Association of State Auditors
Comptrollers and Treasurers (NASACT) and the Association of Local
Government Auditors (ALGA) is pleased to announce a new audio
conference, Everything You Wanted to Know About Performance
Reporting, But Were Afraid to Ask, set for 2 – 3:50 p.m.
Aug. 20. Three performance report preparers will explain the positive
results achieved through use of a performance report. Join
Drummond Kahn, CGFM, CIA, Director, Audit Services,
Portland, OR; Rebekah Stephens, Planning and
Performance Coordinator, Metro Nashville, TN; and Mike Taylor,
CPA, CIA, City Auditor, Stockton, CA. Stephens and Taylor,
first-time recipients of AGA's Certificate of Achievement in Service
Efforts and Accomplishments, will explain why their municipalities
needed a performance report to drive changes within government. Kahn
will share how the Portland performance report has matured over the
past 17 years and how it is being used to improve government services
today.
Cost: $249 per site (UNLIMITED ATTENDANCE) if
you register by Aug. 15 and $299 thereafter. SPECIAL PROMOTION: Register five or more offices from
your government agency or CPAG firm and receive a 20 percent
discount.
AGA’s 2008 Internal Control & Fraud
Conference Hotel Reservations: Why Wait?
AGA’s Internal Control & Fraud Conference takes place
Sept. 22-23 at the Wyndham Phoenix, located at 50 East
Adams Street, Phoenix, AZ 85004.
This newly renovated hotel is centrally
located in its vibrant core, the best of the city is just outside its
doors. The Wyndham Phoenix is just a short walk from numerous
attractions, including the shops and restaurants of Arizona Center,
America West Arena, Bank One Ballpark, Herberger and Orpheum Theaters,
Symphony Hall and Dodge Theatre. Find peace in tastefully-appointed
guest rooms which are both spacious and comfortable.
The room rate is $102 (plus tax) for single
and double occupancy. Rates are guaranteed until Aug. 29
or until the block is sold out. We encourage you to
make your hotel reservations early, for the best price and
availability.
To make reservations, please call the hotel
directly at 800.359.7253 and mention you are attending the “AGA
Fraud Conference” to ensure you receive the discounted rate.
Information about the agenda, speakers and
technical sessions is coming soon... Stay tuned to the website for more
information.
See you in September!
|
July
14, 2008 • News from the Profession
AGA Today is Brought to You by AGA
Corporate Partner Clifton Gunderson
 Clifton
Gunderson offices in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, MD, Harrisburg, PA,
and Arlington, VA, are looking for experienced professionals to join
our public sector practice. The ideal candidate will have 5+ yrs of
Public Accounting or equivalent audit experience along with your BA/BS
in Accounting and CPA or CGFM. 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
AGA's FMSB Weighs in
On Three Proposals
AGA’s Financial Management Standards Boad (FMSB) has sent
comments to the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) on
the exposure draft of the proposed Statement of Federal Financial
Accounting Concepts (SFFAC), Distinguishing Basic Information, Required
Supplementary Information, and Other Accompanying Information. Read the letter.
The FMSB has also sent comments to the
Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) on its exposure draft of
a proposed Statement titled, Fund Balance Reporting and
Governmental Fund Type Definitions. The FMSB wrote,
“Overall, it is a very good, needed and reasonable
standard.” Read the letter.
The FMSB sent another comment letter to the
GASB on its proposed revisions to Concepts Statement No. 2 related to
Service Efforts and Accomplishments Reporting. The FMSB thinks that,
even though there are limitations that can be potentially significant
for a reporting entity, SEA reporting can provide essential
information. Read the
letter.
The GASB will hold a public hearing,
scheduled for 9 a.m., Tuesday, July 29, at the Hilton
Hotel, 255 Courtland Street, NE, Atlanta, GA, in conjunction with the
PDC. AGA Executive Director Relmond Van Daniker, DBA,
CPA, has been asked to testify. For more information, visit
the GASB website.
Pension Funds Boosted
By Oil; While Stocks Fall, Commodity Bets Are Paying Off
Soaring fuel prices that are burning a hole in the wallets of
consumers are not only benefiting oil companies and Middle Eastern
producers. They are also lighting up the investment returns of pensions
funds, which millions of ordinary Americans are counting on for their
retirement. California's public employees' pension fund, the world's
largest, made its first investment of $1.1 billion into oil and other
commodities early last year, and since then, Calpers has seen it soar
68 percent. Fairfax County, VA, pension managers have enjoyed a 61
percent return from a similar move over the past 12 months, far
outpacing any other segment of the fund's portfolio. Other pension
funds are rushing to get in on the action as the prices of oil,
precious metals, corn, uranium and other vital goods continue to reach
record highs. Montgomery County, VA, officials are in the process of
shifting 5 percent of their $2.7 billion pension fund away from stocks
and into commodities. These funds are part of a tidal wave of
investment dollars that has flooded commodity markets in recent years
and, critics say, contributed to the run-up in prices. —David
Cho, The Washington Post. Read more.
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Federal
Accounting Corner
A Graphic Comparison of Proprietary and Budgetary
Accounts; Effect on Financial Statements
The mapping of the Standard General Ledger (SGL)
accounts to the financial statement lines assumes that proprietary
account balances agree with their corresponding budgetary accounts
balances. This is especially true for note 42 (formerly the Statement
of Financing). The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial
Management Service has noted that several agencies still have not
managed to keep these balances synchronized. This month, I decided to
try to show the general relationship of different types of accounts
graphically. The domain of each account (the size of the balance) goes
horizontally, and the different accounts to be compared go vertically.
—by Simcha Kuritzky, CGFM, CPA. Read the entire column.
This Week on AGA's Blog
Visit the AGA Blog at http://aga.typepad.com/aga/.
This week:
Monday: A
profile of AGA Past National President, Sam M. McCall, CGFM, Recipient
of AGA's 2008 Robert W. King Memorial Award
Tuesday:
Amy Abbott,
CGFM, Performance Audit, Division of State Audit, Comptroller of the
Treasury, State of Tennessee, on "Four Keys to Completing the
CGFM"
Wednesday: Anthony Rainey, Agency Fiscal
Officer for the Office of the Chief Technology Officer, District of
Columbia, on "What Effect Will the Move to IFSR Have on Public
Sector Accounting?
Thursday: Joseph L. Kull, CGFM,
Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, on "Transitioning into
Transparency"
Friday: Warren Master, Editor-in-Chief,
The Public Manager
Questions about how to post a comment or how
to subscribe to the feed that sends blog entries straight to your
e-mail address? Find
out more. Want to spend a day as our guest on the blog? Contact Marie Force, communications
director.
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Audit Finds Failings
at Mass. Registry; Scores of Violators Allowed to Drive
The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles allowed thousands of
repeat drunk drivers, chronic speeders, and even motorists convicted of
vehicular homicide to stay on the road despite judges' orders that they
lose their driving privileges, according to a report by the state
auditor. The audit also found that Registry officials failed in another
key area: auto excise taxes. The auditors said owners of luxury
vehicles including Ferraris and Lamborghinis got away with paying a
fraction of what they owed, costing municipalities millions of dollars.
Rachel Kaprielian, who was recently named registrar, said in response
to the audit that the Registry has been aware of its stumbles and is
working on solutions. She called the failure to promptly suspend and
revoke licenses of motorists convicted in the court system "the
most immediate and pressing challenge" facing the agency. The
review by State Auditor Joseph DeNucci found that the Registry allowed
about 7,500 to 9,000 drivers to keep their licenses for two to four
years after judges ordered that their driving privileges be suspended
or revoked. —John C. Drake, The Boston Globe. Read more.
Budget Squeeze Spares
Some States
Devil’s Lake, ND, is as remote a place as there is in
America. Canada lies about 60 miles to the north, Minnesota about 80
miles to the east. It is here, on farms such as Eric
Aasmundstad’s, where you begin to understand why surprising North
Dakota is so well-off compared to most of the rest of the country.
Aasmundstad grows corn, soybeans and wheat on a 3,000-acre farm.
Timely, soil-soaking rains have helped produce two years of bumper
crops at a time of record high prices paid to farmers. More money in
Aasmundstad’s pocket—and those of his
neighbors—ripples through North Dakota’s economy in the
form of additional sales and income taxes. The state is also blessed
with an oil deposit estimated at 400 billion barrels that is producing
at record levels. With the price of oil over $140 a barrel, it’s
no wonder North Dakota led the nation in personal income growth in
first three months of the year. North Dakota represents the flip side
of the budget crisis gripping many state and local governments as the
July 1 fiscal year gets underway. Though nearly half of the states have
had to deal with budget shortfalls and other troubles this year, North
Dakota officials say their state has a $740 million surplus, a
staggering figure for a state that ranks 48th in population and whose
general fund budget is about $1.2 billion a year. —Stephen C.
Fehr, Stateline.org. Read more.
TOPICS is Brought to You by The U.S.
General Services Administration
 The U.S. General
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Financial Officer for the National Capital Region, Public Buildings
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financial management activities. View the complete vacancy
announcements, WP124MP08 or WP124DE08, at WWW.USAJOBS.OPM.GOV or WWW.GSA.GOV. Information Contact:
Chuanda Johnson 202-708-5333. GSA is an Equal Opportunity
Employer.
GASB Issues New
Derivative Instruments Standard
 The
GASB has issued a new standard related to the recognition, measurement,
and disclosure of information about derivative instruments entered into
by state and local governments. GASB Statement No. 53, Accounting
and Financial Reporting for Derivative Instruments, is designed to
improve how these entities report information about derivatives, which
are used by governments to manage specific risks or make investments,
in their financial statements. The Statement specifically requires
governments to measure most derivative instruments at fair value in
their financial statements that are prepared using the economic
resources measurement focus and the accrual basis of accounting. The
guidance in Statement 53 also addresses hedge accounting requirements
and is effective for financial statements for reporting periods
beginning after June 15, 2009, with earlier
application encouraged. The news release and a plain-language article
on Statement 53 can be found on GASB’s website. Statement 53
(product code GS53) can be ordered through the GASB’s order
department at 800.748.0659 or online.
Discounted Audio
Conferences Available
AGA is pleased to again announce a special offer exclusively for AGA
chapters and ADVANTAGE group membership
agencies. Purchase three, four or five AGA audio conferences as a
package and you will receive a 10 percent discount on the early
registration rate offered by the AGA. Purchase six, seven or eight AGA
audio conferences for a 15 percent discount. Purchase nine or 10 audio
conferences for a 20 percent discount. AGA plans to produce as many
monthly audio conferences as possible each year that offer chapters and
group membership agencies a cost-effective and convenient way to
provide quality education for members and others in the government
accountability profession.
This offer is available until Aug.
15. Contact Maria
Lucas at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 308, to register. Download the registration form. If you have any
questions about any of the audio conferences, contact Ray Harris, Director of Chapter
Operations, at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 339.
Not sure what is involved in becoming an
ADVANTAGE group membership agency? Visit our
website
at for all of the details.
AGA Advertising
Opportunities!
Advertise in AGA's electronic newsletters—TOPICS and
AGA Today! Get maximum exposure and build your brand. Find
out what's available in an upcoming issue. Click here for all the information you need to
run your ad. Or, you can contact April Force
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