Highlights
Training
Opportunities
Looking
for a Job?
SAS No. 112: Impact on
Auditors and Preparers
NASACT, in conjunction with AGA and ALGA, is pleased to
announce an audio conference on AICPA Statement on Auditing Standards
No. 112, which establishes standards and provides guidance on
communicating matters related to an entity’s internal control
over financial reporting identified in an audit of financial
statements. The audio conference, worth 2 CPE hours, is set for 2
– 3:50 p.m. EDT on Oct. 19. Speakers are Randy
Roberts, Director of Professional Practices, Office of the
Auditor General, state of Arizona, and Arizona State Comptroller
Clark Partridge. Cost is $249 if you
register before Oct. 13.
New Yellow Book Focus of Nov. 8 Audio
Conference
AGA, in conjunction with NASACT and ALGA, is pleased to
announce a new and
significant audio conference addressing the 2006 revisions to
the Government
Auditing Standards, commonly known as the Yellow
Book,
set for November 8
from 2 – 3:50 p.m. EST. The audio conference, worth 2
CPE
hours, will cover substantial revisions to the standards. To discuss
the major changes and interpretation of the
Government Auditing Standards is AGA Past National President
Jeffrey Steinhoff, CGFM, Managing Director, Financial
Management and Assurance, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO);
Jeanette M. Franzel, CGFM, Director, Financial
Management and Assurance, GAO; and
Marcia B. Buchanan, CGFM, Assistant Director,
Financial Management and Assurance, GAO. The three are considered to be
GAO's Yellow Book "gurus." Cost is $249 per site if
you register by November
3; $299 thereafter.
Plan Now to Submit for Spring Issue of AGA's
Journal
The Spring 2007 issue will focus on State & Local Government. In
recent years, the Journal has reported frequently on the
fiscal crisis plaguing many states and municipal governments. How
are they faring? How are the states and localities absorbing the
increased strain of providing frontline homeland security and preparing
for other impending crises like avian flu and bioterrorism? What effect
is extreme weather having? The Journal Editorial Board looks forward to
receiving your work in this important area by December 1. View the Author Guidelines and submit your articles to
Journal Editor Marie Force.
Member
Happenings
Wanda Brown, a member of AGA's Jackson
Chapter, retired June 30 with 29 years of state service, including two
years at the Mississippi Development Authority and 27 years at the
Mississippi State Hospital.
Elizabeth Jackson, a member of AGA's Jackson
Chapter, has been promoted to Associate Manager Senior, Accounting and
Finance, Mississippi Development Authority. She now manages
specialized accounting for loan and incentive programs.
Audria Lockhart, a member of AGA's Jackson
Chapter, has been promoted to Accounting Specialist Senior,
Accounting and Finance, Mississippi Development Authority. She
now works with divisions' budgets, salary projections and professional
contracts.
Gary J. White, a member of
the Central Ohio Chapter, died July 30, 2006. He was an audit manager
for Whited Seigneur Sams and Raue CPAs.
AGA Advertising
Opportunities!
Advertise in AGA's electronic
newsletters—TOPICS and AGA Today! Get maximum
exposure and build your brand. Find all the information you need to run your
ad! Or,
you can contact AGA's Director of Communications, Marie
Force. |
Volume 46: Issue
18, September 25, 2006
4hr size="1" noshade>
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.
Make Plans Now to Attend AGA's Second Annual National
Performance Management Conference
Accountability and transparency are
critical concepts for today's government leaders.Government performance
matters! Is performance reporting part of your responsibilities or are
you interested in learning more about it? The PMC, with the theme
“Integrating Measurement with Management: Making the
Connection,” is set for Oct. 30-31, in Schaumburg,
IL.
Be a part of AGA’s Second Annual
National Performance Management Conference, which will bring together
state and local government professionals to share in education,
networking and recognition of government entities that have been
honored with AGA’s Certificate of Achievement in Service Efforts
and Accomplishments (SEA) Reporting.
Join the members of the Governmental
Accounting Standards Board (GASB), SEA award recipients and speakers
with vast experience in performance management who will offer different
perspectives on how these reports can be prepared and improved and why
they are important to managing the government. Keynote speakers and
presentations include:
- Robert H. Attmore, CGFM, CPA,
Chairman, Governmental Accounting Standards Board
- Shelly Metzenbaum,
Visiting Professor, School of Public Policy, University of
Maryland
- Jonathan Walters, Staff
Correspondent, Governing Magazine, and author of Measuring
Up
- Corporate Panel on the various tools used
to capture and analyze data
- SEA Award recipients explain the changes
within their governments as performance reporting is adopted.
Register for this excellent networking and
learning opportunity today. See you there!
Calling on Members to Serve in AGA
Leadership Positions
By: Sam M. McCall, CGFM,
Immediate Past AGA National President, and Chair,
Nominating Committee
Now is the time for AGA members to give serious thought to
seeking a leadership position at the National and Regional level. As an
Association, we have made significant progress in supporting education,
professional development, certification, and standards and research to
advance government accountability and I encourage members to consider
the rewards and satisfaction to be received in helping to chart the
course for the accountability profession. Serving in a leadership
position at the National or Regional level will provide you the
opportunity to meet and learn from members from different levels and
branches of government. I hope that each of you will give thought and
take action to be a leader. We need your participation and contribution
so please submit your nomination for one of the following
positions:
- National President-Elect
- National Treasurer-Elect
- Senior Vice President for Regional
Services
- Section II
- Senior Vice President At-Large
- Regional Vice Presidents-Elect
An e-submission of your completed nomination form is due to Rosanna Ortiz by Friday, October
27, 2006.
TOPICS is Brought to You by AGA Corporate
Partner
 Transforming Data into Insight in the Federal
Government
Deploy resources and measure results
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Hyperion Solutions Free Webinar and
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October 4, 2006 at 2:00PM EST
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abundance of data and a lack of truly meaningful information. With an
overload of raw data, you need a way to quickly and easily transform
raw data into meaningful insight to make informed decisions faster to
meet your strategic goals and objectives. Attend this webinar and learn
how an enterprise analytics solution can help you ensure the effective
deployment of resources and measure results against any initiative or
mission. Click here to learn more.
CGFM Frequently Asked
Question
CGFM FAQ: What
topics and subjects qualify for Continuing Professional Education (CPE)
hours required for maintaining the CGFM?
Answer: CPE that
would satisfy the CGFM Program’s requirement must be in
government financial management topics or related technical subjects
applicable to government financial management areas.
The CGFM is initially responsible
for determining whether a topic or subject qualifies as acceptable CPE.
To help one make that determination, the CGFM should consult the Interpretation of Continuing Professional
Education (CPE) Requirements booklet, including a listing of more
than 50 topics and subject areas that can qualify for government
financial management CPE hours. Additional questions should be referred
to the Office of Professional Certification, 800.AGA.7211, ext.
305.
Now
Accepting Nominations for the William R. Snodgrass Distinguished
Leadership Award and Other Leadership Awards Presented at the 2007
NLC
Do you know a state government professional who exemplifies and
promotes excellence in government financial management and has
demonstrated outstanding leadership in enhancing sound financial
management legislation, regulations, practices, policies and systems?
Nominate your candidate for AGA’s William R.
Snodgrass Distinguished Leadership Award today. All leadership
award nominations must be submitted electronically to Rosanna Ortiz by Friday,
October 27, 2006.
TOPICS is Brought to You by the
University of Alabama in Huntsville
 Federal Contract Management
Specialization—Program Begins October 25
Learn about the newest issues in government
contracting.
Explore current procurement issues, proposal preparation, cost
accounting standards, contract negotiations, the basics of managing
subcontracts, and financial management of government contracts. For
detailed information on this or our basic contract program, Federal
Contract Management Essentials, visit www.e-trainingsolutions.net
or email ann@e-trainingsolutions.net
Hurricane Katrina Relief
By: Dr. Henry Hess, CGFM
We marked the one-year
anniversary
of Hurricane Katrina on August 29. This event, together with the
subsequent arrival of Hurricane Rita only weeks later, produced the
largest natural disaster, measured in terms of dollar cost, displaced
persons, and recovery mobilization, to hit the U.S. in modern times. It
is only by visiting the area, driving through the countryside and
neighborhoods, that you begin to understand the extent of the
devastation to property and the resulting effect on residents and
business owners. Read about this New York Capital Chapter member's
experience in Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane
Katrina.
Nashville Chapter Community Service
Project
Photos from the
Community Service Committee's Project Pencil supply delivery to Alex
Green Elementary are now available on the chapter's
website.
FREE Research Reports Available from
AGA—Request Your Copies Today!
The
Federal Purchase Card: Use, Policy and Best Practice
This report summarizes the findings of a study of
purchase card use by federal government agencies. This study is the
first research on the topic to focus solely on federal use of
procurement cards. The study is part one of a four-part series. The
subsequent three phases of this AGA study series will review purchase
card use by state and local governments; the travel card-government
issued charge cards used for travel-by federal government agencies; and
the travel card used by state and local governments. Contact Susan Fritzlen for a hard copy
of the report.
Challenges in Performance Auditing: How a State
Auditor with Intriguing New Performance Auditing Authority is Meeting
Them
In November 2005, the citizens of Washington state
voted to give their state auditor the most extensive authority in the
country to conduct comprehensive, independent performance audits of
state and local governments. To carry out this authority, the
citizen-sponsored initiative dedicated a portion of the state sales and
use tax revenue solely for the conduct of performance audits. This
study documents the initial actions taken by the state auditor to
implement the provisions and prepare to conduct performance audits.
Contact Susan Fritzlen for a
hard copy of the report.
PAR: The Report We Hate to Love
Report No. 6 is the first cooperative project with
PricewaterhouseCoopers taking the lead and supported by representatives
from AOC Solutions, Booz Allen Hamilton, CSC and IBM. The report was
undertaken to determine the usefulness of Performance and
Accountability Reports (PARs) for their intended audiences, and how
that usefulness can be improved. Contact Susan Fritzlen for a hard copy
of the report.
We continue to start new projects
and welcome ideas for the program. Please contact Anna Miller, AGA Director of
Research to pass along suggestions.
Want to Make a
Difference? Consider a Career in Government Financial
Management
 Are you, or
is someone from your chapter planning to attend a career fair, or an
event for college students? AGA now has an eye-catching brochure that
offers information about government financial management careers and
answers questions for aspiring government financial managers regarding
the qualifications and skills needed to get started. It also includes a
bookmark for students that directs them to the Tomorrow’s
Professionals website for more information. To order free copies of
the brochure, please submit the collateral order form found in the Members Only section or contact Jessica Jones.
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