Recently added articles from Government Finance Review:
Correction.(News & Numbers)(Correction notice)
Jun 01, 2009 ... An article published in the December 2008 issue of Government Finance Review, "City Fiscal Conditions; by Chris Hoene and Michael A. Pagano, said the City of Fresno "could not obtain funding for a $15 million bond for library construction, resulting in the city having to ...
Public-sector accounting.(Perspectives)
Apr 01, 2009; ... Accounting, auditing, and financial reporting provide the informational infrastructure for state and local government finance. Like its physical counterpart, this informational infrastructure is easy to take for granted--at least until something goes wrong! This issue of Government Finance ...
The economic stimulus bill: accessing the resources.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provides funding to both state and local governments through a series of grants and loans distributed by various federal agencies, or in the case of local governments, sub-allocated by the states. Many of the funds will be distributed only ...
NCL city fiscal conditions survey reflects economic woes.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... A recent survey by the National League of Cities (NCL) shows how cities are faring under current economic conditions. According to the survey, conducted in December 2008 and January 2009, 83 percent of cities are making spending cuts for the current fiscal year, and 80 percent predict cuts ...
Economic trends.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... Many people are paying more attention to economic trends than they did before the credit meltdown. Financing the Future News: Long-Term Financial Planning Resources, Notices, and Events--an electronic newsletter from the GFOA's Research and Consulting Center--provides its subscribers with ...
Report addresses ways local governments can navigate the financial downturn.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... The Alliance for Innovation and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) released a white paper aimed at helping local governments successfully work through the current economic downturn. The report, Navigating the Fiscal Crisis: Tested Strategies for Local Leaders, ...
Electronic budget cuts costs.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... British Columbia made its 2009 budget primarily available electronically, a cost-effective choice that also supports the province's commitment to be carbon-neutral by 2010. Most recipients received the budget documents on CD, reducing the number of printed copies by 60 percent ...
Governance initiative.(News & Numbers)
Apr 01, 2009 ... The Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at John E Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University will focus on studying and disseminating solutions to real-world governance problems. The institute will endow new faculty positions and provide ...
Fund balance: new and improved.(Cover story)
Apr 01, 2009; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] There is probably no single item in a typical state or local government's financial statements that attracts more attention than fund balance. In February 2009, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) issued GASB Statement No. 54, Fund Balance ...
When leadership fails.
Apr 01, 2009; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When the governing board of a governmental entity fails to carry out its oversight responsibilities, fraud or related problems can result. Most fraud is committed by basically honest people. However, when leadership fails, an environment is created in ...
The GASB turns 25: a retrospective.
Apr 01, 2009; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Winston Churchill, in a November 1942 speech The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) observes its 25th ...
Capital confusion: 12 misunderstandings about Accounting for Capital Assets.
Apr 01, 2009; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Many accounting and financial reporting issues affect some governments, but not others. Virtually all state and local governments, however, must confront the ongoing challenge of accounting for capital assets. To help governments meet this challenge, the ...
Identifying shortfalls: the importance of cash flow analysis in times of fiscal stress.
Apr 01, 2009; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Local governments face increasing challenges to fiscal sustainability, making an effective methodology for forecasting and monitoring cash flow more important than ever. Cash is critical for short-term operations. It pays the salaries and buys the ...
Health-care cost containment strategies.(Best Practices)
Apr 01, 2009; ... High-quality health-care coverage has been a staple in the compensation of public sector employees for generations, and for many years, it was the justification for paying public employees less than their private-sector counterparts earned. Many state and local governments recognized early ...
Moving from reporting performance information to using it: Prince George's County, Maryland: Prince George's County, Maryland, is overcoming the challenges inherent in using a performance management system to make informed budget and management decisions.([PM.sup.2] Connections: PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT & MANAGEMENT)
Apr 01, 2009; ... Strategic plans and performance measures make a difference only if managers use them to make decisions. Simply reporting strategic plans and performance measures may lead to accountability, but rarely results in using information for decision making. Moving from reporting to evaluating ...
Improving employee productivity and efficiency.(Management & Careers)
Apr 01, 2009; ... Twenty years ago, the Dallas County Tax Office turned itself into a laboratory to study what would happen if quality management principles were applied to help employees meet the organization's goals. The office environment was transformed from one in which employees were unfocused and ...
Geographic information systems: pinpointing lost revenues.(Solutions)
Apr 01, 2009; ... The proliferation of information now available creates exciting opportunities as well as challenges for tax auditors. The proverbial "shoe box" of accounting records has been digitized and is recorded in ever-increasing detail. Solutions for efficiently and accurately auditing large ...
President signs stimulus package.(Federal Focus)
Apr 01, 2009; ... President Obama signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) (Public Law No. 111-5) into law on February 17, 2009. The goal of the legislation, according to the White House, is to "create jobs, jumpstart growth, and transform our economy so it competes in the 21st ...
New guidance on special revenue and capital projects funds.(The Accounting Angle)
Apr 01, 2009; ... In February 2009, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) issued GASB Statement No. 54,Fund Balance Reporting and Governmental Fund Type Definitions. The new GASB standard deals primarily with the components that should be used to report fund balance (see "Fund Balance: New and ...
Examining the increasing level of federal debt.
Apr 01, 2009; ... I.O.U.S.A : One Nation. Under Stress. In Debt Film directed by Patrick Creadon distributed by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation 2008, rated PG Book by Addison Wiggin and Kate Incontrerra Wiley 2008, ...