Government Finance Review articles from October 2004

Government Finance Review archives from October 2004

Progress in performance measurement.(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... Performance measurement has moved beyond "an emerging practice" to become an expected component of an effective governmental resource management system. As the use of performance measurement has spread, governments have been creative in...

NCSL: state general fund balances to decline in fiscal 2005.(News & Numbers)(National Conference of State Legislatures )
October 1, 2004... States may be on the home stretch of a marathon budget crisis, a recent survey by the National Conference of State Legislatures shows. "State Budget & Tax Actions 2004: Preliminary Report" indicates that states ended fiscal year 2004 with...

New e-commerce reports underscore need for simplified sales tax system.(News & Numbers)
October 1, 2004... Online sales topped $104 billion in 2003, a nearly 40 percent jump over the previous year and yet state and local governments lost an estimated $15.5 billion in revenue because states cannot effectively collect sales and use taxes on e-commerce...

Recent releases.(News & Numbers)(Economic Development: Strategies for State and Local Practice)(Brief Article)(Book Review)
October 1, 2004... This book is a comprehensive treatment of local economic development. It covers theory (classic and modern); tools (financing, tax policy, nonfinancial assistance); business attraction and retention; business creation (tools and current...

South Carolina erases deficit, restores reserve.(News & Numbers)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... In August, South Carolina Comptroller Richard Eckstrom released surprisingly positive news on the state's financial health as of the end of fiscal year 2004. South Carolina completely eliminated the unconstitutional $177 million deficit that...

CalPERS earns 16.7 percent return for fiscal 2004.(News & Numbers)(California Public Employees' Retirement System)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... The California Public Employees' Retirement System earned a 16.7 percent return on its investments for the one-year period ended June 30, 2004, boosting overall market value to $166 billion and achieving double-digit returns that have not been...

Government Finance Review editorial calendar.(News & Numbers)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
October 1, 2004... GFOA recently released an editorial calendar for the next six issues of Government Finance Review. As outlined below, each issue has a specific theme and will include one or more articles on the theme. GFOA members and other qualified...

Budgeting for outcomes: delivering results citizens value at a price they are willing to pay.
October 1, 2004... Native Americans have many sayings, and one of the wisest is this: When you're riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount. Traditional budgeting, which focuses on costs rather than results, is the dead horse of the public sector....

Translating strategy into results: public sector applications of the balanced scorecard.
October 1, 2004... Eagle, Kim^Cooke, Theodeore C.^Rossi, Terri Sue C. The Origins and Evolution of Charlotte's Corporate Scorecard Responding to public calls for greater accountability and efficiency, governments at all levels are now using performance...

Top ten performance measurement dos and don'ts.
October 1, 2004... Government performance measurement is in. From New York City to government entities of all shapes and sizes, performance measurement continues to gain in popularity. Robert Kaplan's Balanced Scorecard. (1) David Osborne's Reinventing...

Security without collateralization: how a banking innovation is simplifying the process of safeguarding public deposits.
October 1, 2004... Government finance officers tasked with managing millions of dollars in cash reserves must constantly balance the necessity of preserving principal with the desirability of attaining the best possible investment returns. One common investment...

Debt capacity analysis for local governments.
October 1, 2004... Most local governments have capital and infrastructure needs that exceed the size of their capital budgets. To meet those needs, many jurisdictions finance major capital projects by issuing debt. When used appropriately, debt can serve as an...

Planning--the key to a successful interest rate swap strategy: with careful planning and written policies, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority has used interest rate swaps to successfully modernize its bond indentures, regain financial flexibility, and better match its debt to financed assets.(Best Practices)
October 1, 2004... etween 2000 and 2002, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority embarked on the largest municipal debt-restructuring program in American history. Interest rate swaps played a critical role in the program's success. While the successful...

Managing through economic uncertainty: the Most Admired companies distinguish themselves from their peers by maintaining high levels of employee commitment, continuing to emphasize long-term objectives, and focusing on the most essential strategic issues.(Management & Careers)
October 1, 2004... Since 1997, the Hay Group has partnered with Fortune magazine to identify the World's Most Admired companies. For the last three years, we have also helped the magazine compile its list of America's Most Admired companies. In generating the...

When multi-year budgeting makes sense: while multi-year budgeting offers some attractive benefits, these will not materialize unless a government possesses certain necessary characteristics and is committed to a true multi-year budget process.(Solutions)
October 1, 2004... Multi-year budgeting in the public sector has increased in popularity over the years. For fiscal year 2003, 78 recipients (7 percent) of GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award budgeted on a biennial cycle. While some governments...

Internet telephony--friend or foe? Congress has introduced legislation that would extend preemptions of state and local taxing authority to virtually any regulation of VoIP services, threatening millions of dollars in state and local revenues.(Federal Focus)
October 1, 2004... Just as consumers were learning to navigate the new wireless world, a new technology has emerged that is again transforming the way individuals and businesses exchange information. Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP as it is commonly called,...

Presenting information in financial reports: the GASB has published an exposure draft that would provide a conceptual basis for selecting communication methods to present information in financial reports.(The Accounting Angle)
October 1, 2004... In June 2004, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board issued an exposure draft of a proposed "concepts statement" entitled Communication Methods. A concepts statement does not set generally accepted accounting principles as such, but rather...

Information technology--competitive advantage or competitive necessity?(The Bookshelf)(Book Review)
October 1, 2004... Does IT Matter! Information Technology and the Corrosion of Competitive Advantage Published by Harvard Business School Press www, HBSPress.org 2004; 224 pages; $26.95 Like many earlier innovative technologies, information technology...

Calendar.(Calendar)
October 1, 2004... [gfoa events] October Providence, Rhode Island 11-12 Internal Auditing for Governments 11-12 Designing Performance Measurement Systems (Introductory) 12 Preparing a CAFR 13-14 Budgeting for Budget Analysts 13-14...

Will the chains swallow main street?(Commentary)
October 1, 2004... BOOTHBAY HARBOR, Maine -- Cast your eyes up and down the streets of this wonderfully walkable Maine seaside town where lobstermen rub shoulders with summertime tourists and you see scarcely a sign of a national chain. Starbucks, Banana...