Highlights

Nov. 8 Yellow Book Audio Conference to Cover Financial and Performance
Auditing Revisions
AGA, in conjunction with NASACT and ALGA, is pleased to announce its next audio conference will address the upcoming revisions to the Government
Auditing Standards, commonly known as the Yellow Book, set for November 8 from 2 – 3:50 p.m. EST. To discuss the major changes and interpretation of
the Government Auditing Standards is AGA Past National President Jeffrey
C. Steinhoff, CGFM, CPA, Managing Director, Financial Management and Assurance,
U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); Jeanette M. Franzel, CGFM, CPA, Director, Financial Management and Assurance, GAO; Marcia B. Buchanan, CGFM, CPA, Assistant Director, Financial Management and Assurance, GAO: and Stephen L. Morgan, CGFM, CIA, City Auditor, City of Austin, Texas. Cost is
$249 per site if you register by November 3; $299 thereafter. Attendance is
unlimited.

Plan Now to Submit for the 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
Roger Mazula, CGFM, New York Capital Chapter's Vice
President of Communications and perennial AGA newsletter award recipient, is
recovering from successful triple bypass surgery. Hardworking and
energetic Roger is back at home and has already begun working on the next
chapter newsletter while he recuperates. You can't keep a great AGA volunteer down!

Mary L. Rogers, 49, a member of AGA’s Virginia Peninsula Chapter since 2003, passed away on Oct. 4. She worked as an accounting technician for the Defense Finance and Accounting Service at Norfolk Naval Station. Mary is remembered as an active chapter member with a friendly personality and beautiful smile. She leaves a husband and two children.

Two AGA members have been elected to the executive committee of the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers (NASACT). Jan I. Sylvis, chief of accounts in the Tennessee’s Department of Finance and Administration, and a member of AGA’s Nashville Chapter, was elected president. Michigan Auditor General Thomas H. McTavish, CGFM, a member of AGA’s Greater Lansing Chapter, was elected second vice president. The new slate of NASACT Executive Committee officers will serve until next August.

Yan Zhang, a member of AGA’s Montgomery/Prince Georges County Chapter, and a member of Clifton Gunderson’s federal government practice, has been promoted to an associate in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.

Chapter News
Second quarter Chapter Recognition credits are due Nov 20. Questions? Contact Jessica Jones.

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 20, October 23, 2006

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.

Final PMC Program Now Available; Still Time to Register
Is performance management part of your responsibilities? Does your state or local governmental entity want to become more active in reporting goals and accomplishments to its citizens? Be a part of AGA’s Second Annual 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.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn more about performance management from these experts:

All seven GASB Board Members
SEA Award Recipients
State and local government leaders
Corporate representatives with performance solutions

Click here to download the final conference program with a detailed agenda including sessions from:

Stephen Goldsmith, Daniel Paul Professor of Government, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Former Mayor of Indianapolis
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

Click these links to find out how to participate in the 2006 PMC!

Hotel and Travel Information

Last Call for National Officer Nominations and Leadership Award Nominations, Both Due Friday
Nominations for national officers are due this Friday, October 27, 2006. An e-submission of your completed nomination form is due to Rosanna Ortiz. Also due to Rosanna by Friday are your nominations for federal, state, local and private sector leadership awards. Find out more about the awards.

Fall Into Recruitment and Win!
Break out your rakes and go get a pumpkin—its officially fall! It’s also time to fall into recruitment in AGA’s Reach for the Stars member-get-a-member (MGAM) campaign!

We already do have many members that have been falling into recruitment by sponsoring new members into AGA! Just take a look…these members have already won FREE national dues for next year for having sponsored six or more new members since May 1, 2006: Nauri Ahmed, CGFM, Richmond Chapter; Janet Brooks, CGFM, Northern Virginia Chapter; Thalia Davis, New York Capital Chapter; James Kennedy, CGFM, Central Ohio Chapter; Stephanie Paschel, Cleveland Chapter; Ken Sifontes, New York Chapter; and Christopher Wolseley, Guam Chapter. Get your name added to this prestigious list by recruiting at least six new members by December 31, 2006!

Actually, there are rewards for all levels of sponsors! Just ask Frank Karlton, CGFM, Baton Rouge Chapter, and Doris Chew, CGFM, Washington D.C. Chapter, who have both recruited two new members. They are earning AGA Dollars for their efforts! Both have 10 AGA Dollars to redeem toward their membership renewal or a national conference registration. From here on out, with every new member they each recruit, they’ll each earn an additional five AGA Dollars!

Every AGA member is challenged to recruit at least one new member in this year’s MGAM. Our goal is to continue the positive net growth in membership that we experienced this past year. And remember to reach out to those rising stars— individuals just starting out in their careers, with less than three years of experience. Be sure to steer them to AGA’s Tomorrow’s Professionals website, which is chock full of useful information. Check out the campaign details and start falling for recruitment today!

AGA Dollars Earned

Membership Application

AGA's New Orleans Chapter Grateful for Assistance After Hurricane Katrina
AGA’s New Orleans Chapter has sent its heartfelt thanks to the National Office and all the AGA chapters and members who helped those suffering losses during last year’s devastating hurricane season.

When Hurricane Katrina rampaged through New Orleans on Aug. 29 of last year, neighborhoods were drowned, homes were destroyed and families were scattered throughout the country. Eighty percent of New Orleans was heavily flooded, and many areas still look like ghost towns.

AGA’s National Executive Committee launched a fund-raising campaign to help Gulf Coast members harmed in that disaster and during Hurricane Rita a few weeks later. Members responded, and contributions totaled $10,000 for the New Orleans Chapter and $5,000 each for AGA’s Montgomery and Jackson Chapters.

New Orleans Chapter President Jill A. Byrd, CGFM, CPA, said the chapter was “astounded” by the $10,000 donation and another gift of more than $600 from the Montgomery Chapter. Members weren’t sure how they should best spend the money considering the dire financial needs faced by all, she wrote in a letter to National President Jeffrey S. Hart, CGFM, CFE.

“After much debate, we decided to apply the money in the form of a partial rebate to all current members who were renewing their membership for the 2006 – 2007 year. The theme of the entire city is: ‘We’re Coming Back and Rebuilding Our Homes.’ We felt by using the money in the form of a partial rebate, we would be echoing the same theme: ‘We’re Coming Back and We’re Building Our Chapter, Even Stronger,’ Byrd wrote.

She said any remaining money will be used to offer discounted training opportunities and to recruit new members.

“The leadership of the New Orleans Chapter is committed to a goal of rebuilding this chapter,” Byrd wrote. “This generous gift from our AGA family will go a long way in helping us achieve our goal.”

She added, “And remember AGA’s PDC in rebuilt New Orleans in 2009.”

CGFM Profile: Former AGA Staffer Attains CGFM
In the past, Lisa Thatcher attended AGA conferences as an AGA National Office staff member to oversee the awards and governance programs. In the future, she’ll be attending for CPE.

We often introduce new staff members who come to us from the profession we serve. But rarely, if ever, have we had the privilege to acknowledge the accomplishments of an AGA staff member who has left the National Office to join the profession.

This month, Lisa Thatcher, MPA, will be the first former AGA staffer to become a Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM). Lisa, 39, left AGA two years ago for the private sector, gaining the professional experience needed to qualify for the certification. Read the story.

CEAR Program Update
Are you interested in being a Certificate of Excellence in Accountability Reporting (CEAR) Program reviewer? Attend a CEAR Reviewer training event at the U.S. Department of Education on Monday, December 4, 2006, from 1 – 3:30 p.m. in the first floor auditorium. This training is free and offers 2 CPE hours, applicable to both the CGFM and CPA. For more information, please visit the AGA website Seating is limited so register today!

Consider submitting your Performance and Accountability Report (PAR) to AGA's CEAR Program. Through the program, AGA advises agencies on how to prepare integrated and user-friendly PARs that clearly demonstrate what an agency accomplished with taxpayer dollars and the challenges that remain.

All CFO Act agencies, small agency council members and components of agencies that produce a PAR are eligible. The deadline for submission is December 15, 2006. For more information visit the AGA website or call Eveanna Barry, director of performance reporting, at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 324.

Tomorrow’s Professionals: Jason Arrington, CPA, CFE, Age 31, Dallas Chapter President-Elect
AGA boasts an impressive group of early-career professionals, who have embraced government service and volunteerism for their professional Association and their communities. In a continuing series of profiles, we’d like to introduce you to some of these up-and-coming leaders who will talk about their chosen career path and their experiences in government financial management. Enjoy.

Jason Arrington, 31, is a senior auditor with the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He is also the president-elect of AGA’s Dallas Chapter, which will mark its 50th anniversary in December. Read about Jason's experiences in the profession and his rise to the presidency of the Dallas Chapter.

AGA Corporate Partners
Two of AGA's Corporate Partners made the list of the 50 fastest growing government contractors. Congratulations to Delta Solutions and Morgan Franklin. Read more about it.

AGA St. Louis Chapter Revitalization Meeting
November 16, 2006
On November 16th in conjunction with a one-day conference called Internal Controls – Does Anyone Get It?, there will be a St. Louis Chapter revitalization meeting at the Millennium Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri from 5 – 7 p.m.

Current and prospective members are encouraged to attend the chapter meeting. AGA national and regional leaders will be at the meeting to discuss plans for the chapter’s revitalization. There is no charge to attend the chapter meeting. Refreshments will be served! Please send an email to stlouis@midmoaga.org to RSVP for the chapter meeting.

Make a whole day of it and earn eight hours of continuing professional education by attending the Internal Controls conference. David R. Hancox, CGFM, CIA, director of Enterprise Risk Management, Office of the State Comptroller, State of New York, is the featured speaker. Find out more.

AGA Staff List

AGA Membership Application

CGFM Application

Audio Conferences

Event Calendar

Other AGA links
CGFM Certification—Take the CGFM Exams today!

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.