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Highlights

Upcoming Audio Conferences

Feb. 25 —Cost Recovery Auditing with a High Payback

March 11—Using Internal Controls to Better Manage and Monitor Programs

March 25—SEA: Taking Accountability and Transparency to a New Level

April 8 —The Future of Government Auditing: Which Direction(s) Are We Heading?

View the 2009 Audio Conference Schedule

This Week on the AGA Blog

Monday: Jennifer Curtin, MPA, Director of Public Affairs, AGA, on Case Challenge Results

Wednesday: Anna Miller, MBA, CPA, Director of Research, AGA, on Grants Management—How to Better Account for Federal Grants to States, Localities and Non-profits

Friday: William Morehead, Ph.D., CGFM, AGA National President-Elect

AGA Needs You on the Blog! Come share your opinions with the AGA community! We are now booking for February. Contact Marie Force to book your day on the AGA Blog.

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Member News
AGA member Richard F. Chambers, CGFM, CIA, CCSA, CGAP, was named the new president of the Institute of Internal Auditors on Jan. 5. Chambers brings 33 years of internal audit, accounting and financial management experience to his new position. He has worked in several federal government positions and most recently served as national practice leader, Internal Audit Advisory Services, for PricewaterhouseCoopers. The IIA, with members in 65 countries, sets the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing.

Jeffrey C. Steinhoff, CGFM, CPA, CFE, a member of AGA's Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. Chapters, has joined KPMG LLP as a director in the firm's federal advisory practice. He is an AGA Past National President and retired last year as managing director, Financial Management and Assurance, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) after a 40-year federal career. John Cherbini, CGFM, also a member of AGA's Washington, D.C. chapter, heads KPMG's federal advisory practice. He said of Steinhoff, “He has been the driving force behind every federal financial management improvement initiative in recent memory so we're delighted to have him on our team helping our clients with these issues. We also have high expectations for our new government institute and we'll have more to say about it in the coming months."

Sample CGFM Examination Questions Now Available
AGA’s website now offers sample CGFM Examination questions. Go to "What Do Exams Cover" page and click on "View CGFM Examinations Sample Questions" link. Looking for some guidance on the best way to prepare for the examinations? Here are some tips to help you be more successful.

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 Pardoe.

Volume 49: Issue 4, February 23, 2009

TOPICS is Brought to You by AGA Corporate Partner Grant Thornton

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.

It’s Renewal Time: AGA Offers Online Convenience
It’s time to renew your AGA membership and CGFM certification. Renew online today at www.agacgfm.org. Please encourage your chapter members to use this quick and easy renewal method. You may also renew via fax, mail or over the phone.

Whether you are a student, a newcomer or a seasoned veteran of the financial management profession, AGA offers you tremendous value for your membership dollars. The value that you gain is limited only by how involved you choose to become in the Association and how much you take advantage of all the resources AGA makes available to you.

Renew your membership by March 31 and continue to enjoy the excellent benefits offered by your Association. Your quick response will help in a number of initiatives intended to make next year’s activities as interesting and rewarding as possible.

How to Renew Online: Access the AGA website and click on ‘Members Only’ on the left palette. Login using your membership ID number and password (your first initial followed by your last name—no spaces), click on the gray ‘billing’ button above your name. All you have to do is input your credit card information and hit ‘submit.’ The transaction will automatically process via our secure server and the renewal information will be automatically updated in AGA’s in-house membership system. While you are logged into the Members Only section, be sure to take a look at your contact information and make any updates as necessary (especially your e-mail address).

Registration and Hotel Rooms Now Open for AGA’s PDC in New Orleans
Join us in the “Big Easy” June 21–24, 2009, for AGA’s 58th Annual Professional Development Conference & Exposition (PDC)—the premier education and networking event of the year!

At the PDC, you can hear from dynamic speakers, make new contacts, learn about the latest research, discover innovative management techniques and see the technological tools that can aid efficiency and improve effectiveness.

In addition to an excellent technical education program, the PDC is packed with opportunities to network with colleagues from around the country and make new friends. While you’re here, please be sure to experience all the music, culture, history and fine dining New Orleans has to offer.

Hotel Accommodations: This year’s conference activities will take place at two hotels, the Marriott New Orleans and the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel. For your convenience, both hotels are located on Canal Street and are directly across the street from each other.

We have reserved a block of rooms at the New Orleans Marriott and the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel to accommodate PDC attendees. The AGA room rate is $120 per night (plus tax) for single and double occupancy. Rates are only guaranteed until May 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 a reservation, please call your preferred hotel at 800.228.9290 (Marriott) or 888.627.7033 (Sheraton) and mention you are attending the “AGA PDC” to receive the discounted rate.

TOPICS is Brought to You by Corporate Partner American Appraisal
American Appraisal is the world's largest independent valuation firm, with 50 offices on 4 continents around the world. Our Government Services Practice can assist governmental entities with their TARP/Financial Crisis and Public/Private Partnership related transactions, as well as inventory, valuation and overall asset management reporting requirements for Real, Personal and Intellectual Property assets. Contact Kevin J. McHugh at (202) 628-8800 or kmchugh@american-appraisal.com.

AGA's National Leadership Conference a Big Success
If you were unable to attend AGA's Seventh Annual National Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., last Thursday and Friday, you can read all about it on AGA's Blog. Photos from the event are also available.

Case Challenge Award Recipients Announced
AGA would like to congratulate The University of North Carolina at Pembroke as the top award recipient in AGA’s Second Government Finance Case Challenge. The Pembroke team, along with the other finalist, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, made 20-minute presentations at the NLC on designing a Citizen-Centric Report for a fictitious city in North Carolina. Team members Brenda Eldridge, Sean Deruntz and Jeremiah Wyler were chosen by a panel of judges as making an outstanding presentation. They will receive a free one-year membership to AGA, and the team will receive a cash prize.

AGA Offers Two New Courses
Are you trying to reduce your budget or are you concerned about fraud within your organization? AGA offers two courses that address these important issues:

Expense Recovery Auditing
This course is vital for any financial manager looking for ways to reduce budget outlays, without reducing funding for programs within their organization. It examines the process of planning, performing and contracting for cost recovery reviews. Participants will receive an overview of such reviews and explore how to identify high payoff areas such as: utility expenses, fuel taxes, fleet management, construction recoveries, lease exposure, duplicate payment issues and hidden taxes.

Fraud Detection and Prevention
Fraud is a serious and growing problem in our society and is a particular threat to the public and private sectors’ bottom line. How to detect and prevent fraud and fraudulent activities is crucial to effective program management and accountability. This course is designed to highlight the genesis of fraud in today’s environment, ways to detect it, solutions for correcting it and methods to mitigate future risk. The course is intended for financial and program managers, auditors and information technology professionals.

Each course is taught by an experienced professional at your office location. Upon completion, participants are awarded 8 to 16 CPEs depending on the length of the course. For more details about these and other AGA-sponsored training courses, including pricing and availability, contact Bekka Gehrmann, AGA’s education manager, at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 309.

Members of AGA's FMSB to Testify at FASAB Hearing
Members of AGA’s Financial Management Standards Board (FMSB) will testify on two Exposure Drafts at a Feb. 25 public hearing of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board. FMSB member Ed Mazur will testify on the ED on Accounting for Social Insurance, Revised and FMSB member Eric Berman will testify on the ED on Reporting Comprehensive Long-Term Fiscal Projections for the U.S. Government. Read the Exposure Drafts.

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