Highlights
Training
Opportunities
Looking for a Job?
Assessing Risk and
Controls Focus of Upcoming 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 sponsoring an audio conference worth 2 CPE
hours,
addressing risk and internal control issues that confront
auditors and
management and offering practical solutions for both. Speakers
include Frank
W. Crawford, CPA, president, Crawford &
Associates, P.C., Certified Public Accountants, and chair, AICPA
Government Expert Panel and
Oklahoma Society of CPAs Government Accounting and Auditing
Committee; and Arthur A. Hayes, CGFM, CPA, CFE, director,
Division of State Audit, Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury,
State of Tennessee, who has chaired and served on various
committees and task forces for AGA, GFOA, Southeastern
Intergovernmental
Audit Forum and AICPA. Both speakers are renowned lecturers,
trainers and
discussion leaders for government agencies at all levels,
government and
private associations and firms. Join us from 2 – 3:50
p.m. EST, Feb. 28 for
a lively, open discussion. Cost is $249 per site (unlimited
attendance)
before Feb. 23, and $299 thereafter. Register online. Visit the AGA website
for the audio conference schedule.
Compliance Technologies Subject of Next
NASACT Audio Conference
NASACT, in conjunction with AGA and
ALGA, is planning a Jan. 31 audio
conference, "Managing Internal Control with Compliance
Technologies."
Speakers are Steve Allison, CGFM, chair of
the Multi-State Consortium on
Internal Control of the National Association of State
Comptrollers,
Deloitte's Rob Garagiola and Julia P.
Burns, CGFM, director of the Quality
Assurance Bureau, Office of the Comptroller, Commonwealth of
Massachusetts. Earn 2 CPE
hours at the audio conference, set for 2 – 3:50 p.m.
Jan. 31. Cost is $249
per site (unlimited attendance) before Jan. 26, and $299
afterward. Register
today.
Renewal
Time Right Around the Corner
It's almost time to renew your
membership and CGFM for the 2007–2008 membership year. Membership
renewals will be mailed in early February, so keep watch for your
renewal packet. Better yet, renew online starting January 29! With just
a few clicks, you can make sure you receive all of your valuable AGA
member benefits for another year. Simply enter the AGA website, log on to the Members
Only section using your member ID number and password. From there, you
will see your AGA profile. Not sure of your member ID or password?
Contact the AGA Customer Satisfaction Center at 800.AGA.7211.
Don’t miss out on another great year of AGA membership—mark
AGA Renewal time on your calendar today!
Get to Know Your AGA
Corporate Partner
DecisionPath Consulting helps organizations use Data
Warehousing (DW) and Business Intelligence (BI) technologies and
processes to improve performance. DecisionPath provides a full
scope of DW and BI services, from program assessment and strategy
development, to business requirements analysis, data modeling,
development and systems integration. Our consultants operate at
the forefront of DW and BI, developing and teaching courses for The
Data Warehousing Institute (TDWI) as well as consulting on business and
technical performance issues for large government agencies and Global
1000 corporations. Find out how we’ve helped other
organizations like yours increase their information impact by calling
us or visiting us on the web at www.decisionpath.com.
Charles Kaplan
Director of Business Development
6 Montgomery Village Avenue, Suite 622
Gaithersburg, MD 20879
PH: 301.990.1204
charles.kaplan@
decisionpath.com
www.decisionpath.com
Free Research Reports Available from AGA
The AGA Corporate Partner Advisory Group (CPAG) continues to produce
research studies of great value to governments, industry and the entire
AGA membership. The CPAG has six published studies and upwards of nine
are in the works. Download the reports. Contact Susan Fritzlen for hard copies.
Chapter News
Welcome new members who have transferred into your chapter!
Check out the Chapter Transfer Report located in Members Only to see who is new
to the chapter.
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! Contact AGA's Director of
Communications, Marie
Force.
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Volume 47: Issue 1, January
16, 2007
TOPICS is Brought
to You by AGA Corporate Partner 
Grant Thornton Global Public Sector delivers
financial, technology and performance management solutions to federal,
state and local government clients, and international organizations.
Call us to see if we can help your agency manage its resources more
efficiently and effectively at 703.637.2750.
From the National President, Jeffrey S. Hart,
CGFM, CFE
Happy New Year! I’d like to begin this new
year by sharing two very exciting happenings for AGA. First, we have
the confirmation of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board’s
(GASB) jurisdiction concerning performance reporting. Second, is my
trip to meet with our sister association in Canada. I can hardly
express just how grateful I am to be serving as your National President
at this particularly exciting time!
On November 28, 2006, the Board of Trustees of the
Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF) confirmed that the GASB has the
jurisdictional authority to include “service efforts and
accomplishments” in its financial accounting and reporting
standard-setting activities for state and locals. I also see the
FAF’s action as an important affirmation of AGA’s work to
improve performance reporting. Read more from President Hart.
NLC Early Registration Deadline
Extended!
 We have extended the early registration deadline until
Jan. 22 for those who still need to register for the
National Leadership Conference! Take advantage of this opportunity to
save on registration fees before they go up. Questions? Contact Julie Cupp at 800.AGA.7211, ext.
322.
Take the CGFM Examinations before the
NLC
 Don't miss
the opportunity to take the CGFM Examinations and earn your CGFM before
the annual National Leadership Conference (NLC) in Washington D.C. AGA
is offering a two-day Intensive Review Course on Thursday, February 8,
and Friday, February 9, 2007 and an opportunity to take CGFM
Examinations on February 10-11, 2007. The cost of the course is only
$249 for qualified participants, and it offers 18 CPE hours.
Special Bonus: the CGFM Examinations are offered at no
cost to course attendees.
This course is designed as a supplement to previous
preparation for the CGFM Examinations, so this is a perfect opportunity
for those individuals who have already attended GFM training courses or
have been preparing by using the CGFM Study Guides. Enrollment is
limited and participants must first apply and be accepted into the CGFM
Program, so don't delay.
More information
and a registration form for this event are available on AGA
website. If you have any questions, contact Katya Silver at 800.AGA.7211,
ext. 305.
TOPICS is Brought to You by AGA Corporate Partner
Watkins Meegan Government Services, LLC
 Watkins
Meegan Government Services is growing rapidly and currently seeking
experienced professionals. Successful candidates will have 2-5
years experience in government accounting and consulting. BS in
accounting or related field required; CPA, CIA, CISA, CGFM, Secret
Clearance, A-123 audit experience a plus. Email your resume to careers@wmgsllc.com.
Registration Now Open
for PDC 2007
 Saddle up,
dust off your best pair of boots and get
ready for PDC 2007. Download your registration form and make your
plans
now to join us in Music City, USA for AGA’s 56th Annual
Professional Development Conference & Exposition.
Location:
Nashville Convention
Center
Conference: June 24-27, 2007
EXPO: June 24-26, 2007
Register today and secure your place at the government financial
management education event of the year.
Make PDC Hotel
Arrangements Early
Make your hotel reservation today for AGA’s 56th Annual
Professional Development Conference & Exposition. We have reserved
a block of rooms at several hotels in the heart of downtown Nashville.
Room rates are $99 (plus tax) for single occupancy and $119 for double
occupancy.
The Renaissance Nashville Hotel
is
adjacent and connected to the Nashville Convention Center and will
serve as the headquarters hotel. Our overflow hotels are conveniently
located within three or four blocks of the Nashville
Convention Center. More information about specific hotel features and
amenities will be provided on our website next month.
Make your reservations as quickly as possible by calling the hotels
directly. Be sure to mention that you are attending
the “AGA PDC” to ensure you receive the discounted rate.
After June 4, 2007,
AGA’s room blocks will be released—and the hotels may
charge significantly higher rates. We look
forward
to seeing you!
- Courtyard by Marriott Nashville
Downtown: 888.687.9377 or 615.256.0900
- Doubletree Hotel Nashville:
800.222.TREE or 615.244.8200
- Renaissance Nashville Hotel
(Headquarters): 800.327.6618 or 615.255.8400
- Sheraton Nashville Downtown Hotel:
800.447.9825 or 615.259.2000
TOPICS is Brought to You by the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission
 Accountant/Systems Accountant
USNRC seeks Accountant/Systems Accountant for Rockville,
Maryland. Multiple positions performing a wide range of accounting or
system accounting functions. Bachelor's Accounting or related w/min. 1
yr. exp. in performing general accounting duties. Apply: www.nrc.gov/who-
we-are/employment.html , ref. #OCFO-2007-0003. Deadline: 2/9/07.
EOE-M/F/D/V. U.S. citizenship.
Member-Get-A-Member Recruitment Campaign—10
Members Win FREE Dues!
 As part of the membership recruitment campaign,
Reach for the Stars, 10 members will receive
complimentary national membership dues for the 2007–2008 year for
sponsoring six or more new members before the incentive’s
deadline of December 31!
Congratulations to these outstanding
recruiters: Sheila Arrington, Virginia Peninsula
Chapter, 30 members; James Kennedy, CGFM, Central Ohio
Chapter, 27 members; Stephanie Paschel, Cleveland
Chapter, 16 members; Janet Brooks, CGFM, Northern
Virginia Chapter, 13 members; Nauri Ahmed, CGFM,
Richmond Chapter, 12 members; Thalia Davis,
New York Capital Chapter, 11 members; Ken
Sifontes, New York Chapter, 10 members; Chris
Wolseley, Guam Chapter, 10 members; Brenda
Ryan, New York Chapter, 8 members; and Karen Doyle,
CGFM, Maine Chapter, 7 members.
Will one of these members be this
year’s Recruiter of the Year? Only time will
tell! And there is still plenty of time to recruit new members before
the end of the membership campaign, April 30, 2007.
But wait! There are still plenty of
other incentives to earn in the Reach for the Stars
recruitment campaign. Find out all
the details! Click here for a membership
application and start recruiting today!
AGA Accepting
Independent Nominations for National Officers
As outlined in the Association's bylaws, AGA will accept
independent nominations from AGA members via petition until Feb. 1,
2007. At that time, if other candidates are nominated, the Bylaws and
Procedures Committee will conduct an election to determine the
officers. However, if no other nominations are received, the
committee's slate will take office effective July 1, 2007. Click here
to view the complete slate of nominees. Contact Rosanna Ortiz with questions.
December NEC Meeting
Highlights
The National Executive
Committee met on Friday, December 8 for its last quarterly meeting in
2006. At the September meeting, the NEC agreed that Sectional
Leadership Meetings (SLM) were the best way to nationally train
regional and chapter officers. Work is now under way to set the agendas
and locations for these meetings, which will begin in March. With this
move, the Senior Vice President for Regional Services (SVPRS) and
Regional Vice Presidents (RVP) position
descriptions were changed in December to incorporate their
responsibilities in organizing their SLM. The travel
guidelines were also updated to include the SLM and to reflect
current operations.
Nominating Committee Chair Sam
McCall, CGFM, announced the slate of officers
for the 2007–2010 program years, and an orientation will be held
for all incoming NEC officers.
Click here to view
a full copy of the minutes for December as well as other NEC
meetings.
NEW! AGA
Speaker Database
Do you know of a speaker or a topic that would be of interest to other
AGA members? Well, the National Office would like to hear from
you!
In response to member and chapter requests, the National Office has
designed an online speaker database.
Here’s how it works:
If you have heard a great speaker and you think that person has
something of value to share with other AGA chapter members, fill out an online
form. All submissions will go to Joe Jozefczyk, AGA’s
Director of Education who will add the speaker to the database. This
information will remain on an internal database housed at the National
Office and will not be publicly listed on the website.
If your chapter is planning an event and you need to find a speaker
that discusses a particular subject area or lives in a certain
location, contact Joe at
800.AGA.7211, ext. 307, and he will help you find a speaker from the database.
It’s that simple!
Member Happenings
Allison Baugher,
a member of AGA's Baltimore Chapter, gave birth to her son, Emmitt, on
Nov. 3. Best wishes Allison.
Dwight Hadley, CPA,
board member of the New York Capital Chapter, and CFO of
the Albany County Airport Authority, recently received
a certificate of
achievement for excellence in financial reporting from
the Government
Finance Officers Association of the U.S. and Canada for
its annual
financial report . In addition, Dwight also received an
award of financial
reporting achievement for preparing the report.
Jesse Harrup, a
member of AGA's Virginia Peninsula Chapter, was recently promoted to
Rear Admiral in the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary.
Joseph "Kapp"
Kapelewski, CGFM, CPA, CIA, a member of AGA's Richmond
Chapter, is the new assistant director
for the Accounting and Internal Control Compliance Oversight Unit with
the Virginia Department of Accounts.
William J. Raftery,
CPA, a member of AGA's Southern Wisconsin Chapter, will retire
as the State of Wisconsin controller on Feb. 15 after 18 years in the
position. He is a past president of the National Association of State
Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers (NASACT) and the 2007 recipient
of AGA's William J. Snodgrass Distinguished Leadership Award at the
National Leadership Conference in February.
Paul Webster and
Jean Adkins-Blasy, members of AGA's Baltimore Chapter,
have received awards from the Social Security Administration. Webster
won a deputy commissioner's citation for his efforts in ensuring
expenditures related to Hurricane Katrina and Medicare Modernization
Act were recorded in a timely and accurate fashion in SSA's accounting
records. Adkins-Blasy received as associate commissioner's citation for
her outstanding performance in managing the Regional Medical
Consultants and FedEx workloads.
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