Government Finance Review articles from June 2004

Government Finance Review archives from June 2004

A place at the table: finance officers and economic development.(Perspectives)
June 1, 2004... For better or worse, the role of finance officers in government organizations continues to expand. One area in which finance officers are assuming a higher profile is economic development. This makes sense in that many development projects...

NCSL: Washington still shifting costs to states.(News & Numbers)
June 1, 2004... The cost of implementing federally mandated programs to state governments will reach more than $29 billion in fiscal year 2004, according to a new report from the National Conference of State Legislatures. NCSL is launching a renewed campaign...

Bipartisan committee announces reforms to New York State budget process.(News & Numbers)(Joint Legislative Conference Committee)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... The Joint Legislative Conference Committee on Budget Reform has announced an agreement that would fundamentally change the budget process in the State of New York to help achieve an on-time budget and put a contingency budget in place in the...

Moody's gives D.C. first 'A' in 14 years.(News & Numbers)
June 1, 2004... District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams and CFO Natwar Gandhi announced in April that Moody's Investors Service upgraded the district's general obligation bond rating by two notches, from Baal to A2, and changed the rating outlook to stable...

Labor, transportation departments top annual performance reporting rankings.(News & Numbers)
June 1, 2004... The Department of Labor and the Department of Transportation tied for first place in the 5th Annual Performance Report Scorecard produced by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. The rankings are based on the quality of the...

Illinois comptroller raises red flag on borrowing.(News & Numbers)
June 1, 2004... The State of Illinois' total outstanding debt grew by more than a third in fiscal year 2003 to $51.7 billion, dramatically outstripping debt growth rates in the previous four years, according to an annual report issued by State Comptroller Dan...

Standard & Poor's: state budgets to remain tight for another year.(News & Numbers)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... State economic recovery is under way, but it has been uneven and below average in many areas of the country, according to a report released in April by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. A review of fiscal 2005 state budget proposals...

The Professional Edge: Competencies in Public Service.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... The Professional Edge: Competencies in Public Service By James S. Bowman, Jonathan P. West, Evan M. Berman, and Montgomery Van Wart M.E. Sharpe, March 2004 The new context and character of public service-shifting values,...

Project evaluation for public-private partnerships: aligning development with strategic goals in Virginia Beach.
June 1, 2004... GFOA's newly formed Committee on Economic Development and Capital Planning is working to identify policies and guidelines for local governments to use in evaluating when and how to invest in economic development projects, including...

Risk and reality in public headquarters hotel development.(publicly financed convention center hotels)(Editorial)
June 1, 2004... Editor's note: In February 2002, Government Finance Review published an article entitled "Tax-Exempt Hotel Financing: A Primer for Finance Officers. This article presents a different perspective on this issue. In recent years, a number of...

Managing the capital planning cycle: best practice examples of effective capital program management.
June 1, 2004... Just like an operating budget, and in harmony with operating budget development, planning and management of the capital improvement plan should occur in a regular, annual cycle. Because the CIP management cycle comprises so many activities, it...

Managing major capital projects: lessons learned from Milwaukee's 3rd district police station and data communications center.
June 1, 2004... Major capital improvement projects are usually accompanied by great anticipation, from the moment the project concept is first revealed until the ribbon is cut and the project is completed. As architectural renderings and models of the...

Greasing the skids: how federal lending programs can move your transportation projects forward.
June 1, 2004... Surface transportation plays a critical role in community and regional economic development. It enables the safe and efficient delivery of goods and services, and provides citizens with the ability to access tangible and intangible resources...

Performance measurement: an essential management tool.(Best Practices)
June 1, 2004... In 2001, GFOA's Committee on Governmental Budgeting and Fiscal Policy formed the Subcommittee on Performance Management to articulate a performance management initiative for the association. Drawing on their own collective expertise, advisors...

Will real leadership please step forward?(Management & Careers)
June 1, 2004... Whether the topic of water cooler conversation is the local school district, city government, corporate management, or national politics, someone is certain to say, "What's needed here is some real leadership." Invariably, the others nod...

Back to school: GFOA helps college procure ERP system.(Solutions)(Government Finance Officers Association, Enterprise Resource Planning)
June 1, 2004... Although GFOA has provided technology procurement consulting services to public agencies for a number of years, we just recently took on our first higher education client. Higher education is one sector in which technological advancements have...

Internet access taxes--is the end in sight?(Federal Focus)
June 1, 2004... On April 30, the U.S. Senate passed a modified version of the Internet Tax Non-Discrimination Act. While the bill would prevent state and local governments from taxing Internet access for another four years, it is a far better outcome than the...

Accounting for tobacco settlement revenues.(The Accounting Angle)
June 1, 2004... In April 2004, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board for the first time promulgated guidance on how state and local governments ought to account for their claim to future payments arising from the settlement between the states and the...

An a-to-z guide on capital budgeting and finance.(The Bookshelf)(Book Review)
June 1, 2004... Capital Budgeting and Finance: A Guide for Local Governments Published by the International City/County Management Association (800) 754-8780 bookstore.icma.org 2004;424 pages: $65.00 Capital projects are large, expensive, and lengthy...

Calendar.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
June 1, 2004... [gfoa events] June Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Preconference Seminars) 11 Win-Win? Labor and Management Cooperation Strategies 11 Intergenerational Leadership 12 What's Wrong with Budgeting? (And How to Fix It!) 12 Managing...

A metro merger wave: could it be?(Commentary)(city-county consolidations)(Column)
June 1, 2004... Could America be ready for a wave of city-county consolidations? Until this year, it would have seemed madness to suggest so. From the 1960s, when Nashville, Jacksonville, and Indianapolis put together mergers, no major city merged until...