Larry Yium was part of the senior command staff of the Houston Police Department for over twenty- five years; making him the longest serving member in that role. He retired as the Director of Planning and Research for the department, which entailed administering the strategic long-range planning, research, performance reporting, program/policy development, supply, logistical emergency preparations, and certain other administrative functions for the department. Previously, he served as either the Chief Financial Officer or Chief Administrative Officer for the largest operations in the City of Houston-the Water & Sewer Utilities, Capital Projects, Public Works, and the Houston Police Department. He had prior experience also with the cities of Dallas and Denton, Texas. In his various job assignments, he has served in diverse public sector environments such as a city manager’s office, finance, public works, water and sewer utilities, customer service and call center, code enforcement, and public safety. Currently, Mr. Yium is a trainer and a consultant on governmental finance and public safety issues.

He holds the certifications of Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM) and Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO). Besides being a long-time member in the Government Finance Officer Association, he is also a member of Association of Government Accountants and International Association of Chiefs of Police. In addition, he had chaired the Major Cities Chiefs Association’s Financial Management Group for over 15 years, until his retirement. He was a long-time reviewer of GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Award, and he was a subject matter expert for the CGFM certification exam. He has spoken or conducted training before numerous agencies, professional, and college groups on financial and public safety issues. The topics taught include governmental financial management, government financial literacy, performance reporting, leadership, and fiscal impact of poor practices to law enforcement personnel.