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Highlights
CPE
Opportunities
AGA's National
Nominating Committee Selects New Slate of National Officers To Take
Office on July 1, 2005
Jeffrey S. Hart, CGFM, a member of AGA's
Denver Chapter, Office of the Inspector General, EPA, leads the slate
as National President-Elect Designate. Thomas J. Sadowski,
CGFM, a member of AGA's Mid-Missouri Chapter, Director of
Accounting at the University of Missouri, was chosen as National
Treasurer-Elect Designate.
As outlined in the Association's bylaws, AGA
will accept independent nominations from AGA members via petition until
Feb. 15, 2005. 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, 2005.
Click here
to view the entire slate of national officers.
Call for
Performance Reports!
Publicly Reporting Performance
Information in State or Local Government? Reserve Your
Space NOW for participation in the AGA's Certificate of Excellence in
the Service Efforts and Accomplishments (SEA) Reporting Program's
Implementation Phase (October 2004 through February 2005).
Limited space available.
Click here for more information about participating in
the SEA Program.
AGA Benefit: Did You
Know?
National Information with a Local Touch
With more than 80 chapters across the
United States, AGA serves as a way to keep you on top of financial
management issues specific to your region. Offering everything from
monthly meetings and newsletters to volunteer activities, chapters
facilitate networking opportunities to keep you ahead of the game.
Local education sessions, conferences and guest speakers keep you
informed on major topics in your area and also offer credits toward
your professional certifications. Click here to
find local events and the latest news from your chapter.
 ORDER NOW!
A Primer on Internal Controls and Auditing: Crucial to Government
and the Economy
By: Wanda A.
Wallace, Ph.D., CPA, CMA, CIA
Internal control has never been optional, and now an easy-to-read
resource directed to a wide audience is available to understand both
what is meant by "internal control" and how an
“audit” is conducted. Click
here to order your copy.
TOPICS is brought to you by Treasury Agency
Services
Exciting Job Opportunities at the U.S. Department of the
Treasury:
Treasury Agency Services (A Franchise Fund
within the Treasury Department—Financial Management Service) is
announcing two job opportunities which close on
12/29/04:
- GS 11/12 Accountant AS-05-006 and
- GS 11/12 Systems Accountant AS-05-004
Click here to see detailed
information on the OPM website. For key word search enter
“Accountant." For pay grade range enter from
”11” to “12”.
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Volume
43: Issue 25, December 20, 2004
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.
Name Change Focus Group Recommends No
Change to AGA Name; NEC Accepts Findings
Association of Government Accountants is
here to stay—for now anyway.
The Name Change Focus Group, convened by
National President Bobby A. Derrick, CGFM, recommended no change to
AGA’s name and that recommendation was accepted by the National
Executive Committee (NEC) at its Dec. 10 quarterly meeting.
The seven-member focus group, chaired by Past
National President Richard V. Norment, CGFM, CIA, was designed to
represent all corners of the AGA membership after a vote was taken
calling for further study into the matter at the annual National Board
of Directors meeting in July.
Click here to read more about the Focus Group's
decision and to read the group's final report on the matter.
 AGA's
Third Annual National Leadership Conference—Improving
Government Performance: Financial Managers Take Center Stage
Early Registration
Deadline: January 14, 2005
Earn 14 CPE hours at AGA’s 2005
National Leadership Conference (NLC), February 7 – 8, Washington,
D.C. This conference is a must for top government leaders and private
sector professionals who work to keep our governments fiscally sound.
The NLC is an extraordinary educational and networking event designed
for government financial managers by government
financial managers.Get ready to take center stage—register today!
Click here to view the conference
brochure.
Click
here for more information about the conference.
TOPICS is brought to you
by AGA Corporate Partner
Management Concepts offers
courses that help you build successful government business operations,
including working capital funds, revolving funds, franchise funds, and
reimbursable activities.
- Develop the knowledge and skills you need
to make your business successful
- Build a robust, entrepreneurial government
operation
- Ensure maximum performance of your
government business-like activity
Click here to learn more. Enroll today!
Need CPE?
AGA and NASACT are offering convenient,
inexpensive educational opportunities in the form of two
audioconferences, both worth 2 CPE hours.
NASACT, in conjunction with AGA and the National Association of
Local Government Auditors, is producing the first audioconference,
“GASB Statement No. 40: Disclosing Investment Risk in the 21st
Century,” set for 2–3:50 p.m. EST Jan. 12. Most states will
be implementing GASB Statement No. 40, Deposit and Investment Risk
Disclosures, an amendment of GASB Statement No. 3, for the 2005 fiscal
year. Speakers from Ohio and Utah will discuss implementation issues
and John Good, senior manager at Ernst & Young LLP, will discuss
audit issues related to Statement 40. Click here to
register.
AGA is sponsoring the second
audioconference, set for 2–3:50 p.m. EST March 2. The speakers
are experts on fraud: David Hancox, state audit director, New York
State Comptroller's Office, and John Hall, national consultant. Contact
Ray Harris for more
information.
For a cost of merely $249 per telephone line, your chapter,
agency or firm can provide 2 CPE hours to as many people as can fit in
a room.
Chapters can provide the audio conferences at no cost to its
members or charge a nominal fee to recover costs and perhaps make a
profit. Chapters can also partner with a government agency, perhaps by
handling the logistics for the audio conference, while the agency
provides the meeting space and equipment (telephone and LCD projector
and screen to show the PowerPoint presentations that generally
accompany the audio portion). Additionally, chapters could use the
audio conferences to recruit new members. Get creative—AGA and
NASACT hope to offer as many as 10 audio conferences in
2005!
Important Reminder for CGFMs Certified in
1996, 1998, 2000 or 2002
We are almost at the end of the
year—have you earned your 80 CPE hours?
If your CGFM certification was awarded in
1996, 1998, 2000 or 2002, you need to have 80 CPEs earned within the
two-year period of January 1, 2003 - December 31, 2004. If short, you
can take advantage of the grace period of January 1 - March 31, 2005 to
catch up on your CPEs (these hours then cannot also be counted towards
your next cycle of 2005-2006).
If you have not yet reached your mark, you
still have time. What you have to do is remind yourself that
every activity might serve a dual purpose. If you are earning a
graduate degree, if you are teaching or writing, or if you are earning
CPEs for another certification, you might be able to count these CPEs
towards your CGFM certification requirement. Review the opportunities
available to you for earning CPE hours, and you will realize that there
are many ways in which you can maintain your CGFM certification without
undue cost or time demands.
For example:
• Online CPE availability includes Journal CPE Online Program
that offers CPEs for reading The Journal of Government Financial
Management and taking the relevant quiz and online courses offered
through Micromash and
SmartPros, two educational organizations in partnership with
AGA.
• Federal government employees have free
access to E-Training through the Gov
Online Learning Center.
• CPEs sponsored by AGA chapters, state
CPA or other government finance officer societies and other
organizations.
• Instructors can earn CPE hours for
teaching a course (not to exceed 40 CPEs in any two-year period);
writers who publish an article or book that contribute directly to
CGFM’s professional proficiency can earn up to 20 CPEs; and
students who are earning their Masters degree can receive 45 CPEs by
completing a 3-credit college course that relates to government
financial management.
Click
here for more detailed information about earning CPE hours, what topics
and subjects qualify for CPEs and answers to commonly asked CPE
questions. If you have questions about the CGFM CPE requirements
you can also contact AGA National at 800.AGA.7211, ext. 313.
Holiday
Schedule
TOPICS & AGA Today will be on vacation December 27 & January 3.
We will resume publication on January 10. The National Office will be
closed December 24- January 3. We wish you all a happy & healthy
holiday season!
Happy Holidays from the National Office
Staff: Back row, (left to right) Craig Galloway, Kayde Morton,
John Harris, Ada Phillips, Rosanna Ortiz, Relmond Van Daniker, Anna
Miller, Ray Harris, Rica Muhammad, Pete Rose and Julie Cupp. Front row
(left to right) Katya Silver, Susan Fritzlen, Catena Sanders, Jessica
Jones, Cristina Barbudo, Jennifer Curtin, Marie Force and Christina
Camara. |