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Highlights Audio Conference on Citizen-Centric Reporting Set for April 23 AGA's Citizen Centric Government Reporting Program encourages governments to publish an annual "state of the government" report that is no more than four pages long. The reports, designed to be visually appealing, provide understandable information to citizens about the performance and financial condition of the government, as well as demographics and future challenges. Hear what tools are available from AGA to produce such a report and listen to three practitioners who have recently published such reports: Treasurer-Elect Designate Mary Lechner, CGFM, CPA, Chief, Internal Control Branch, U.S. Coast Guard; AGA Past National President Sam McCall, CGFM, CPA, City Auditor, Tallahassee, FL; Kim Wallin, CPA, CMA, Controller, State of Nevada; and Relmond Van Daniker, DBA, CPA, AGA Executive Director. Cost is $249 per site (UNLIMITED ATTENDANCE) if you register on or before Friday, April 18, 2008 and $299 thereafter. Government agencies and AGA Corporate Partner members who register five or more offices will receive a 20 percent discount. Also, AGA chapters can register for $200 per site. Register online, or print the regular registration form, or the special promotion registration form and fax it to 703.684.6933. Anatomy of Ethical Slips in Government Topic of May 14 Audio Conference During this audio conference, the presenter will recount recent ethical lapses in government and examine the causes and effects. By examining a series of ethical lapses, we find that a pattern emerges. That pattern allows us to think about this question: What is it in the culture of an agency that allows obvious ethical breaches to occur and continue? Once we understand the culture, we can think about putting the detection methods, as well as antidotes, in place. Thinking more deeply about nurturing a culture of ethics is the key to prevention of ethical lapses, at all levels. To share her expertise in ethical behavior and its ramifications is Marianne M. Jennings, JD, professor in the Department of Management in the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University (ASU). At ASU, Jennings teaches graduate courses in the MBA program in business ethics and the legal environment of business. Please join us for two hours of lively discussion that includes 20 minutes for Q & A. Cost: $249 per site (UNLIMITED ATTENDANCE) if you register by May 9 and $299 thereafter. SPECIAL PROMOTION: Register five or more offices from your government agency or CPAG firm and receive a 20 percent discount. Register online, print the registration form and fax it to 703.684.6933 or print the Special Promotion Registration form and fax it to 703.684.6933. Mark your calendar AGA's Fourth Annual National Performance Management Conference, set for Oct. 27–28, 2008, in Seattle. Check the AGA website in April for more details. Member News AGA Advertising Opportunities!
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Volume 48: Issue 6, March 31, 2008 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. The AGA Blog Opens for Business Tomorrow! Bookmark http://aga.typepad.com/aga—the place for government finance professionals to share ideas and dialogue with some of the top names in the business. Guests include: April 1: AGA Past National President Jeffrey Steinhoff, CGFM, retired managing director, Financial Management and Assurance, U.S. Government Accountability Office. April 2: AGA Executive Director Relmond Van Daniker, DBA, CPA April 3: John Webster, CGFM, retired chief financial officer, Library of Congress. April 4: John Radford, CGFM, Oregon state controller. April 5: Thomas J. Sadowski, CGFM, CPA, Missouri state controller, AGA Past National President, two-time Past National Treasurer. Upcoming guests include: Wendy Payne, CGFM, executive director, Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board Joe Kull, CGFM, CPA, director of federal practice, PricewaterhouseCoopersLLP AGA National President-Elect Designate Billy Morehead, Ph.D., CGFM, CPA, chair, Division of Accountancy, Computer Information Systems and Finance, Delta State University Dave Bennett, CGFM, CPA, assistant county mayor/finance director, Blount County (TN) Government and AGA National Treasurer Have something to say? Want to join the fun? Contact AGA Communications Director Marie Force to get on the guest list. We are now booking for May. Bloggers are asked to provide a 500- to 750-word essay on a topical subject that ends with a question to encourage readers to post comments/questions. Then, on your “day” as our guest, we ask you to check back a couple times to reply to comments. Sound like fun? Get your name on the schedule for May! Just want to check out what everyone's got to say? Have your coffee with AGA beginning tomorrow. See you there! TOPICS is Brought to You by Corporate Partner MorganFranklin
Deadline Extended for National Awards Nominations Academy of Government Accountability Announces the Mortimer A. Dittenhofer Dissertation Award Application Deadline AGA PDC 2008 Host City Atlanta: Attractions, Action and a Place Where Dreams Come True Underground Atlanta is an entertainment complex that runs six blocks beneath the city and sizzles with activity, day or night. Shop at more than100 specialty shops or dine at delicious chain restaurants and smaller eateries. After dark, enjoy our clubs and restaurants in Kenny’s Alley for a night of pure entertainment. New World of Coca-Cola® is a tribute to the fizzy sweet favorite and features the world's largest collection of Coke memorabilia. The new and expanded World of Coca-Cola® features a thrilling 4-D theater, fully-functioning bottling line that produces commemorative 8-ounce bottles of Coca-Cola®, a tasting room and a Pop Culture Gallery. Centennial Olympic Park is always bustling with activity. This unique 21-acre park serves as Georgia's lasting legacy of the Centennial Olympic Games and anchors a revitalized residential and commercial development in Georgia's capital. The park is open for free events, concerts and family fun. Georgia Aquarium offers special discounted tickets to PDC attendees. Now is the perfect time to experience the world’s largest aquarium. With eight million gallons of fresh and marine water and more than 100,000 animals representing 500 species from around the globe, you are sure to see things you have never seen before. Family fun can be found at Imagine It! The Children's Museum of Atlanta. Kids can explore colorful hands-on exhibits and experience the power of imagination and the pure delight of learning. If you venture just a few miles outside the city, you can also see other famous attractions, including Zoo Atlanta, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta Botanical Gardens and the Jimmy Carter Library & Museum. At the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site you can see the civil rights leader’s birth home and view exhibits that explore his legacy. Margaret Mitchell House & Museum gives you the unique opportunity to tour the place where Mitchell wrote “Gone with the Wind,” as well as a movie museum. Don’t forget a trip to the High Museum of Art, which is currently exhibiting Louvre™ Atlanta, an unprecedented partnership between the High Museum of Art and the Musée du Louvre in Paris that brings hundreds of works of art from the Louvre’s collections to Atlanta through 2009. Atlanta has been called the “Sports Capital of the World,” a fitting term for a city with successful professional sports teams, state-of-the-art sports facilities and host of some of the world’s most prestigious sporting events. Stay an extra day to see the Braves play the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday, July 31. Visit the Atlanta Braves’ website for more information and to purchase tickets. Can’t decide? Get a CityPass and visit six of Atlanta’s top attractions.The CityPass is a booklet of tickets to the most popular attractions. CityPass cuts through the clutter of what to see and do, zips you past entrance lines and shaves up to 50 percent off the price of individually purchased tickets. Click here for more fun and attraction ideas. With arts, sports, history, dining and everything in between, it’s clear that Atlanta offers non-stop excitement. The city’s diverse range of attractions creates a memorable vacation experience you won't soon forget. Take the CGFM Examinations Before the PDC Newsletter, Website Contest Details Announced Chapter newsletter editors must submit copies of their chapter’s September, January and February newsletters to Chris Camara by COB Friday, April 18. When all entries are in, we will pick ONE month out of a hat and all entries from that month will be judged. This year, the web volunteer committee will review all working chapter websites during the week of April 21.To ensure that your chapter is included in this year’s judging, check your chapter’s listing on the AGA website. This page is used to build our website judging lists every year. If you have any questions or concerns about the chapter website competition, please contact April Pardoe. Award recipients will be announced in May, but the formal presentations will take place during PDC, set for July 27–30 in Atlanta. All award recipients must be members of AGA. Good luck! NOTE TO TOPICS READERS: Please 'whitelist' AGA's newsletters by sending an e-mail to postmaster@303media.net to prevent AGA from being blocked by e-mail or spam filters. Enjoy our weekly newsletters and feel free to forward them to your government financial management colleagues. |
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Other AGA Links Bring New AGA-Sponsored Training Courses to Your Organization
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© Association of Government Accountants 2008 Disclaimer: AGA serves government accountability professionals by providing quality education, fostering professional development and certification, and supporting standards and research to advance government accountability. If you would like to opt off of future AGA mailings, please e-mail agawebmaster@agacgfm.org. Thank you. |
MorganFranklin puts the word “value” back into agency compliance efforts. Visit 
Atlanta offers Southern hospitality and warm service with a decidedly international flair. It’s rich with history, culture and heritage and is the ideal host city for PDC 2008. While you’re here we invite you to take time to enjoy some of the sights, sounds and history that Atlanta has to offer. Come early, stay late and enjoy your trip and be sure to experience some of the city’s most popular attractions: