Highlights
Upcoming Audio Conferences
Sept. 29—Improving Program Performance & Accountability Through Cooperative Audit Resolution
Oct. 20—Was It Fraud or Just Poor Audit Quality?
2010-2011 Audio Conference Schedule
Early Registration Rates for Fraud Conference End Today
AGA's Fifth Annual Internal Control & Fraud Conference, worth 14 CPE hours, will be held Sept. 15–16 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. Fees will increase by $100 after close of business today.
Hear leaders in government and private industry discuss the latest discovery techniques and lessons learned from various schemes. Learn how poor internal controls can lead to fraud, waste and abuse. Discover how different levels of government are cooperating to improve services to citizens. The agenda and session descriptions are available online.
Speakers include:
Peter Budetti, JD, MD, Deputy Administrator for Public Integrity, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Kenneth Donohue, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Jeanette M. Franzel, CGFM, CPA, Managing Director, Financial Management and Assurance, U.S. Government Accountability Office
Erin D. Haney, CIA, Statewide Financial Internal Controls Officer, State of Oregon
Arthur A. Hayes, JD, CGFM, CPA, Director of State Audit, Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury, State of Tennessee
Laura Hirst, Deputy State Auditor, Auditor General’s Office, State of Michigan
David Kotz, Inspector General, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Steve Linick, JD, Deputy Chief, Fraud Section, Criminal Division and Task Force Director, U.S. Department of Justice
Raquel Rutledge, Investigative Reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Winner of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting
James Sheehan, JD, Medicaid Inspector General, Office of the Medicaid Inspector General, State of New York
Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Daniel I. Werfel, JD, MBA, Controller, Office of Federal Financial Management, U.S. Office of Management and Budget (Invited)
Fees are $500 for AGA members and $675 for nonmembers until Aug. 30, when they increase by $100.
Register online.
Download the registration form.
Hotel Rooms Reserved for Fraud Conference
AGA has reserved a block of rooms at the Four Points by Sheraton, 1201 K Street, NW, in downtown Washington, D.C., to accommodate attendees of AGA's Fifth Annual Internal Control & Fraud Conference. The hotel is just a short walk (about seven blocks) or cab ride to the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.
The room rate is $229 (plus tax) for single and double occupancy. Rates are guaranteed until Friday, Sept. 3, 2010, or until the block is sold out. We encourage you to make your hotel reservations early, for the best price and availability.
To make a reservation, please call the hotel at 202.289.7600 or 888.627.8681 and mention you are attending the “AGA Fraud Conference” to ensure you receive the discounted rate.
Network with AGA Online Anytime
 Become a Fan of AGA on Facebook
 Create a Linkedin Profile
 Follow AGA on Twitter
 Visit AGA on GovLoop
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 Pardoe.
|
August 30, 2010 • News from the Profession
AGA Today is Brought to You by AGA Corporate Partner Clifton Gunderson
 Clifton Gunderson, ranked as one of the nationfs largest certified public accounting and consulting firms, is a leader in providing assurance, risk management, IT security, financial accounting and management, and management advisory services for federal, state and local government agencies. Visit our website at www.cliftoncpa.com for more information.
Point of Contact
Patrick Byer, MBA, CGFM, CPA, CISA, CISM
301-931-2050
Pat.Byer@cliftoncpa.com
Federal News
Federal Agencies Could be Passing Over Good Job Candidates
Federal agencies have room for improvement when it comes to assessing applicants for federal jobs, according to a new survey of government officials and observers.
The report, released Thursday from the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service and PDRI, a human resources consulting firm, found government does a poor job of evaluating applicants for federal positions. Representatives from veterans groups, labor unions, the Office of Personnel Management and agency HR staffs, along with federal hiring managers, said a lack of collaboration between stakeholders is a key barrier to an effective assessment process.
Respondents reported insufficient guidance from OPM, limited resources for training hiring managers and a narrow focus on the formal assessment process also get in the way of hiring good candidates to federal jobs. Concentrating on writing clear position requirements, conducting reference checks and using internship programs effectively would improve applicant assessment, they said. \Emily Long, Government Executive. Read more.
Future of Federal Rule-making: Pilot Project Aims to Increase Public Participation
For decades, the basic mechanics of federal rule making have changed little: First comes the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register, then a public comment period, followed by the final rule. Although agencies now put rule making materials online, the system is still largely the province of major stakeholders, lawyers and advocacy groups. An experimental website known as www.regulationroom.org offers a far more inclusive experience. In the place of a proposed Transportation Department rule on airline passenger rights that ran some 24 triple-column pages in the Federal Register in June, the unofficial site offers a one-paragraph overview, accompanied by brief explanations of the major issues in play. An online moderator fields comments; there's even a Facebook page. "What we're trying to do there is make a government process that is supposed to be broadly participatory, but is in fact very intimidating to people, and make it a more accessible process," said Cynthia Farina, a Cornell University law professor working on the pilot project in partnership with the Transportation Department. As of late last week, the site had attracted almost 16,000 unique visitors and yielded about 1,100 comments, she said. By contrast, a study earlier this decade found that the average Transportation Department rule making received fewer than 50 comments, Farina said. \Sean Reilly, Federal Times. Read more.
State and Local News
Billions on State Ballots
Washington State is one of nine states without a state income tax. Bill Gates Sr., the father of the Microsoft founder, wants to change that. Gates is lending his high-profile name and influence to a ballot measure that would tax the income of individuals who earn more than $200,000 and couples who earn more than $400,000. His son \ the world's second-richest person \ definitely falls into that category.
The elder Gates, who also co-chairs the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, says Initiative 1098 would generate $1 billion a year in new revenue dedicated to education and health care. He also says it would put an end to Washington being gthe most regressively taxed state in the country.h Washington is one of several states where voters this fall will weigh in on ballot measures that, if passed, would have enormous fiscal consequences. Voters in California, Colorado and Massachusetts will take up tax questions that could expand or shrink the foundations on which future budgets are built. \Pamela M. Prah, Stateline.org. Read more.
Mortgage Fraud Thrives in Good and Bad Times
The house on the 53rd block of South Wood Street in Chicago's Back of the Yards doesn't look like a $355,000 home. There is no front door and most of the windows are boarded up.
Public records show it was sold in foreclosure for $25,500 in January 2009, then resold for $355,000 in October. In between, a $110,000 mortgage was taken out on the home, supposedly for renovations. This June, the property went back into foreclosure.
To Emilio Carrasquillo, head of the local office of non-profit lender Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (NHS), the numbers don't add up. He believes this is a case of mortgage fraud.
Mortgage fraud is a crime that cost an estimated $14 billion in 2009 and could be hampering an already fragile recovery in the housing market. The FBI has been fighting back, assembling its largest ever team to fight the scams. They have their work cut out for them, though, as a tsunami of foreclosures is making classic scams easier and spawning new ones to boot. \Reuters. Read more.
Hear about trends in mortgage fraud at AGA's Fifth Annual Internal Control & Fraud Conference from Joyce Branda, Director, Commercial Litigation Branch - Civil Fraud, U.S. Department of Justice.
Federal Accounting Corner
History of the Merged Account
My column last month caused quite a stir in some circles, and I feel a need to set the record straight. From an accounting or practical standpoint, Treasury's proposed "C" Account is analogous to the old "M" Account, but from a legal standpoint, they are nothing alike. To understand why, we need to examine the history of the "M" (Merged) Account.
Start of the Merged Account
In 1956, Congress passed Public Law 84-798, which was incorporated in United States Code Title 31 Section 701(a). It required that, after June 30 when a fund expired, any unobligated amounts would be withdrawn into a "surplus" fund, while the cash to fund obligations would remain in the original symbol. Two full fiscal years after the appropriation expired, both the original and surplus fund balances were transferred to their respective successor merged accounts. Obligations could continue to be liquidated in the merged obligation account. Agencies could transfer funds from the merged surplus account to the merged obligation account to cover upward adjustments (called a restoration), and any money freed up by deobligation was withdrawn to the surplus account. Withdrawals were reported in column 3 of the TFS-2108 Year-End Closing Statement. In 1974, Public Law 93-344 amended this section to end the year on September 30 and not June 30. In 1982, Public Law 97-258 rearranged Title 31 so the old section 701(a) became the current section 1152. \Simcha Kuritzky, CGFM, CPA. Read the entire column.
Private Sector News
Despite Reform, Banks Have Room for Risky Deals
When Congress passed a new financial regulation bill last month, it sought to prevent federally insured banks from making speculative bets using their own money. But that will not stop banks from making bets that some critics deem risky, even as the rules go into effect over the next few years.That is because many such bets \ on the direction of the stock market or the price of coal, for example \ are done on behalf of clients. So, the banks say, they will continue to be allowable despite the new restrictions. Indeed, several trades that were made on behalf of clients went bad for the banks even as the new rules were being debated in Washington this year. JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, for example, each lost more than $100 million on transactions handled for customers in the period from April to July. Blowups like these, only larger, contributed to the financial crisis and forced the federal government to spend billions of dollars to bail out financial institutions. \Nelson D. Schwartz and Eric Dash, The New York Times. Read more.
Accounting Standards News
Comment Deadline Approaching on GASB's Pension Preliminary Views
 Friday, Sept. 17, is the deadline for commenting on the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Preliminary Views, Pension Accounting and Financial Reporting by Employers. The document is available free-of-charge on the Documents for Public Comment page of the GASB website.
AGA's FMSB Comments on GASB Exposure Draft
AGA's Financial Management Standards Board (FMSB) sent a comment letter to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) on its revised Exposure Draft of a proposed Statement on Service Concession Arrangements. The FMSB generally agreed with the provisions in the revised exposure draft, and responded to the questions posed by GASB in the draft. Read more.
FASAB Issues Standard on Subsequent Events
 The Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) issued Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards (SFFAS) 39, Subsequent Events: Codification of Accounting and Financial Reporting Standards Contained in the AICPA Statements on Auditing Standards. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountantsf (AICPA) Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS) AU section 560, Subsequent Events, includes accounting and financial reporting guidance that is not discussed in the authoritative literature that establishes accounting principles. The objective of SFFAS 39 is to incorporate that guidance into the authoritative literature of the FASAB. Read more.
AAPC Issues Technical Release on Accrual Estimates for Grant Programs
The Accounting and Auditing Policy Committee (AAPC) has issued Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Technical Release (TR) 12, Accrual Estimates for Grant Programs. The purpose of TR 12 is to provide a cost-effective framework for developing reasonable estimates of accrued grant liabilities. TR 12 addresses materiality considerations, risk assessment, and procedures for estimating accruals for grant programs, including acceptable procedures until sufficient relevant and
reliable historical data is available for new grant programs or changes to existing
programs. TR 12 also provides guidance on acceptable sources of documentation for grant accrual estimates; internal controls, including monitoring of internal controls and validation of grant accrual estimates; training of grantees; and monitoring of grantee reporting. The TR is effective for periods beginning after Sept. 30, 2010, with earlier implementation encouraged. Read more.
Keynote Speakers Scheduled for AGA's Performance Management Conference
 AGA's Sixth Annual Performance Management Conference will be held Oct. 13–14, 2010, at the Embassy Suites Baltimore at BWI Airport. The conference is worth 11 CPE hours, with an additional 2 CPE hours available if the attendee participates in the “How-To Tool Kit” session on Thursday afternoon. Sessions include data reliability, using measures to improve service delivery, Governmental Accounting Standards Board's (GASB) update on Service Efforts and Accomplishments, leveraging community indicators, best practices in using activity-based costing, dashboards and working with the public.
Keynote speakers include:
Beth Blauer, Director, Governor's StateStat Office, State of Maryland
Shelley H. Metzenbaum, Ph.D., Associate Director of Performance and Personnel Management, U.S. Office of Management and Budget
Harry Hatry, Distinguished Fellow, Director of the Public Management Program and Principal Research Associate for The Urban Institute
Jonathan Walters, Governing magazine correspondent and author of "Measuring Up: GOVERNING's Guide to Performance Measurement for Geniuses and other Public Managers"
Register online
Print the registration form and fax to 703.684.6933
Audio Conference Fall Schedule Has Been Changed
The audio conference “Achieving Transparency—The Next Step to Integrating Your Data,” originally scheduled for Oct. 20, has been moved to Nov. 17 to accommodate the speakers and audience dealing with Recovery Act reporting.
The audio conference “Was It Fraud or Just Poor Audit Quality?” has been moved to the Oct. 20 slot. It was originally scheduled for Nov. 10. All audio conferences are held from 2 to 3:50 p.m. Eastern time.
If your group cannot accommodate the changes, you can request a credit toward a future audio conference. Please direct such requests to Maria Lucas at mlucas@agacgfm.org or 800.AGA.7211, ext. 308. Questions regarding all audio conferences should be directed to Raymond Harris at rharris@agacgfm.org or 800.AGA.7211, ext. 339.
Read the entire 2010–2011 schedule.
AGA Offers Courses on Internal Controls and Fraud Prevention
Is your organization taking the necessary steps to prevent fraud from occurring in its operations and programs? Do you know how to detect fraudulent activities and what steps to take to prevent them from happening?
AGA offers several training courses related to fraud and internal controls and participants are awarded NASBA recognized CPEs upon completion of each course. The courses are taught at your work location by experienced professionals who understand the steps necessary to prevent fraudulent activities from hampering your organizational structure and its bottom line. The courses include:
- Fraud Detection and Prevention
- Internal Controls for Auditors\Assessing Risks and Controls in Government Audits
- Understanding Controls in the Federal Government\Understanding A-123
- Internal Controls for Managers and Staff\Running an Effective Government Organization
For more information about these courses or any of the other 37 courses that AGA offers, please contact Joe Jozefczyk, AGAfs director of education, at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 307, or Lynn Hoffman, programs coordinator, ext. 342.
|
