Kelly Strickland, Certification Committee Chair
The Certification Committee has been very busy this Spring! As part of the committee’s responsibility for administering and overseeing the CGFO program, we are in the process of managing the Winter/Spring CGFO review webinars and Spring testing sites. The test date is April 27, 2018 and we will be offering 10 locations for testing. As you can imagine, this requires a lot of planning, and most importantly, volunteers like you.
The focus of the CGFO program, conferred by the Florida Government Finance Officers Association, is to encourage a level of knowledge and professionalism in the field of government finance emphasizing areas specific to Florida local governments. The program also encourages development and maintenance of professional competence for practicing governmental finance officers. To achieve the CGFO designation, candidates must demonstrate a high level of competence by successfully completing a rigorous five-part examination, an Ethics and Law exam, and provide documentation that they meet the minimum education and experience requirements. The exam tests knowledge in five broad subject areas: accounting and financial reporting, debt administration, financial administration, municipal budgeting, and treasury management.
The CGFO Designation
- Distinguishes you as a business professional who is committed to a strict code of ethics;
- Confirms substantial knowledge of accounting, finance, and important related fields and demonstrates the ability to integrate this information into the business decision process
- Demonstrates your commitment to personal professional development;
- Provides an opportunity to assess and demonstrate capabilities and expand your knowledge base;
- Distinguishes you from peers and proves your commitment to excellence and lifelong learning;
- Expanded career options;
- Identifies you as a motivated professional for hiring, recognition, and advancement purposes; and
- Provides personal satisfaction.
In addition to managing the Winter/Spring CGFO review webinars and exams, the Certification Committee has released a Request for Qualifications, seeking qualified candidates/firms to review and rewrite portions of its Certified Government Finance Officer (CGFO) Program which includes: Examinations, Study Guides, and Review Presentations. We are hoping to have the update completed before the Fall School of Government 2018 event.
To those interested in earning the CGFO designation, please be aware that the application deadline to sit for the Fall exam is September 15th. The application and program requirements can be found on the FGFOA website.
For any CGFOs interested in becoming an Instructor for the CGFO review courses, the Certification Committee has implemented an Instructor Database. Please reach out to Jeremy Baker (JBaker3@pbcgov.org) for an application.
Brandy Ferris and Patricia Williams, Education and Webinar Committee Co-Chairs
Over the past year, the Education & Webinar Committee has hosted numerous events – and your participation has made them very successful! The Committee is responsible for all education events outside of the FGFOA Annual Conference and the School of Government Finance. We strive to provide relevant and relatable topics for your continuing education needs.
The most recent Webinar, titled “Adapting to a Multigenerational Workforce” was well received with over 350 participants. We opted for a different format than our previous webinars and solicited a lot of audience interaction – it was fun for the speakers, and we hope you enjoyed it just as much!
The FGFOA Divergent Series provides a unique opportunity for us Finance Folks to receive education on topics that are not part of our everyday job. This year’s series will focus on Technology and is a full day seminar. The details of the event is below:
The schedule of events for the remainder of the year is as follows:
- April 19, 2018 – Economic Update
- April 20, 2018 – Divergent Series
- May 17, 2018 – Legislative Update
- July 19, 2018 – GASB 87
- August 16, 2018 – Cost Allocation Plans
If you have any topics you would like us to cover in the future, please let us know – we would love to hear from you.
Melissa Burns, Technical Resources Committee Chair
Advisory & Best Practices: New
Wayne Hart, Senior Staff Accountant, Clerk & Comptroller, Palm Beach County, Member, Technical Resources Committee
After its September 2017 meeting, the Government Finance Officers’ Association released a new advisory on Electronic Vendor Fraud and six new best practices, including Investment Policies for Defined Benefit Plans, Negotiating Economic Development Agreements, Economic Development Incentive Policies, Investment Policies for Tax-Deferred Retirement Savings Plans, Post-Issuance Policies & Procedures, and Primary Market Disclosure. Below is an overview of the Electronic Vendor Fraud advisory and the Investment Policies for Defined Benefit Plans best practice, as well as a brief synopsis of the other five new best practices.
Electronic Vendor Fraud
GFOA recommends that governments use electronic payments to improve efficiency, security, and tracking – but without appropriate internal controls, electronic payments are still at risk. In particular, as the best practice indicates, vendor fraud is often associated with fraudsters submitting fake documentation (frequently involving multiple hacks) to change the bank routing and account numbers for electronic vendor payment deposits. To help reduce this risk, the best practice recommends mitigating strategies that fall under one of five strategic categories: general, staffing, process, form/information, and follow-up. Within these broad categories are such mitigating strategies as the following:
- Whenever changing vendor information, particularly payment addresses and/or bank account information, corroborate it through other sources.
- Adhering to the concept of proper segregation of duties, involve additional staff members in the process of changing vendor information.
- Do not rely on email to confirm changes – confirm changes by telephone instead.
- Regarding the government’s website, vendor change forms should be removed. Instead, the vendors should contact government staff directly for forms.
- Once you become aware of fraudulent account routing and numbers, notify your bank and law enforcement – it’s possible they may already be involved in a related investigation and might be able to help.
Further strategies are mentioned in this advisory which emphasizes that since a single strategy will not stop all types of fraud, implementing multiple ones will help to better mitigate the risk of electronic vendor fraud.
Investment Policies for Defined Benefit Plans
Keeping in mind that the GFOA already had an existing government investment policy best practice, the Executive Board approved an additional one that focuses on defined benefit plans. In particular, the GFOA recommends that such plans establish and adhere to a formal investment policy to regulate and monitor the system’s investment program. In addition to the elements outlined in the GFOA’s Best Practice Investment Policy, several key elements are recommended by GFOA concerning investment policies for defined benefit plans:
- Statement of goal, purpose, or mission
- Statement on managing risks of individual investments
- Liquidity of investments
- Guidelines for other investment-related service providers
- Investment management guidelines
- Cost management
- Performance measurement
- Corporate governance
As the GFOA best practice indicates, the formal policies should be adopted by the governing board. Considered fiduciaries, the Board along with other key decision makers have the responsibility to invest the system’s assets for the exclusive benefit of the participants.
Regarding the five other new best practices, below is a brief synopsis of each:
- Negotiating Economic Development Agreements - governments should develop and pursue a clear negotiating strategy when working with third-party developers on economic projects; the finance department should be among the negotiating team.
- Economic Development Incentive Policies – jurisdictions should create policies that provide for appropriate parameters when offering such an incentive.
- Investment Policies for Tax-Deferred Retirement Savings Plans – governing bodies should formalize policies that govern the selection and monitoring of investments made available by the plan.
- Post –Issuance Policies and Procedures – issuers should develop policies that assist in meeting compliance requirements and preventing, identifying, and correcting possible violations during the term that bonds are outstanding.
- Primary Market Disclosure – governments should establish clear policies prior to issuing debt that carefully consider information that may be material to investors.
References:
GFOA Advisory, “Electronic Vendor Fraud”, September 2017
GFOA Best Practice, “Investment Policies for Defined Benefit Plans”, September 2017
GFOA Newsletter, October 5, 2017