News

Patrick J. McCoy, Director of Finance, Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New York, New York, became the new president of Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) at the association’s annual business meeting on May 23, 2017. During the past year, McCoy served on the Executive Board as president-elect. He has been a member of the Executive Board since 2013. McCoy accepted the gavel from 2016-2017 President Marc Gonzales, Director, Department of Finance, Clackamas County, Oregon.

Steven Gibson, Assistant City Manager, City of Rock Hill, South Carolina, was elected as president-elect of Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) on May 23, 2017. The election was held at the association’s annual business meeting in Denver, Colorado.

Gibson has been a GFOA member for 18 years. He is an ex officio member of GFOA’s Committee on Governmental Budgeting and Fiscal Policy— served as Chair in 2013-2014 and Vice Chair in 2012. He has been a reviewer for GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Awards Presentation Program for more than 10 years. 

Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) latest guide, Best Practices in School Budgeting, provides a comprehensive budget process framework that emphasizes academic and finance collaboration to best align resources for desired student outcomes. The framework represents the culmination of a multi-year effort led by GFOA, with input from numerous school district officials and other experts in education finance, to develop guidelines for better budgeting, tailored specifically for school districts.

Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) has announced the recipients of its 2017 scholarships. GFOA’s mission is to enhance and promote the professional management of governments. Among the ways GFOA accomplishes its mission is through education, training, and leadership.

The recipients of the four awards for the Government Finance Professional Development Scholarship are Christopher Carlos, CPA, Michelle M. DeNeui, Tiffany Leigh Jacobs, and Robert D. Symanski. Each will receive $9,000. 

Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) 111th Annual Conference will be held May 21─24, 2017, at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, Colorado. The keynote speakers will be Jim Collins, who will speak during the opening general session on leadership, along with a panel of experts,David Parkhurst, Paul Soglin, and Adam Atherly, who will discuss health-care cost containment at the state and local government level for the general session on Tuesday.

Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) has announced the recipients of its 2017 scholarships. GFOA’s mission is to enhance and promote the professional management of governments. Among the ways GFOA accomplishes its mission is through education, training, and leadership.

The recipients of the two awards for the Frank L. Greathouse Government Accounting Scholarship are Hannah F. Chu and Magali Moralez. Each will receive $9,000. 

What’s the Right Thing to Do?

Establishing the issue price of a tax-exempt bond is important to issuers of tax-exempt debt as it:

GFOA encourages members to submit letters to the most recent proposed amendments to SEC Rule 15c-2-12. The rule requires bond dealers to review issuers’ official statements before underwriting municipal bonds and to reasonably determine that the issuer has contracted to disclose annual financial and operating information, as well as material event notices, on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s Electronic Municipal Market Access website.

On March 1, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed amending Exchange Act Rule 15c2-12 to include additional event notices under continuing disclosure undertakings. Rule 15c2-12 requires bond dealers to review issuers’ official statements before underwriting municipal bonds and to reasonably determine that the issuer has contracted to disclose annual financial and operating information, as well as material event notices, on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s Electronic Municipal Market Access website.

The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher Morrill, City Manager from Roanoke, Virginia, since 2010, as its next Executive Director.  Mr. Morrill succeeds Jeff Esser, who is retiring after 35 years of distinguished service as GFOA Executive Director on June 30, 2017. Mr. Esser joined the Washington, D.C. office of GFOA in 1979 when the membership of GFOA was 9,000 and today it is 19,000.

GFOA’s best practices in school guidelines are centered on a comprehensive budget process framework focused on academic and finance collaboration to best align resources and desired student outcomes. The framework represents the culmination of a multi-year effort led by GFOA, with input from numerous school district officials and other experts in education finance to develop guidelines for better budgeting tailored specifically for school districts.