View sessions for GFOA's 117th Annual Conference.

The Annual Black Caucus Business Meeting will be used to address the business of the Caucus, including the election of new officers. An update on the activity of the Caucus will also be provided to members. This year’s business meeting will feature two guest speakers. First, will be Jonathan Blasher, Director of Parks and Nature for Oregon Metro to discuss how the organization has worked to implement a $475 million bond measure to improve access to nature, water quality and fish and wildlife habitat, and the region’s climate resilience around principles of racial equity and climate justice. Second, will be Sebrina Owens-Wilson, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director at Oregon Metro. She will discuss how the regional government strives to deliver racial equity outcomes in the Greater Portland Area, focusing on one of their current initiatives, the Construction Career Pathways Regional Framework.

Parks and Nature Director, Oregon Metro

Finance Manager, Broward County, Florida,
Mobility Advancement Program

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director, Metro, Portland, OR

Leadership, Ethics, and Trust

GFOA Documents

The Local Government Hispanic Network (LGHN) and GFOA both have missions to provide leadership, education, resources, and other services to support local governments and their employees. Collaboration between the two organizations can provide opportunities to share member benefits and work together on important initiatives to develop both the technical and leadership skills of Hispanic/Latino finance officers and expand their networks. Attend this networking session to learn more  about this new partnership and meet members from both LGHN and GFOA.

Deputy Executive Director

Growth of the Hispanic Finance Officer: Introduction to GFOA's Partnership with LGHN

While most finance officers are aware of major funding programs like  ARPA, IIJA, and IRA, did you also know other federal funds opportunities  now exist for state and local government? In this session, speakers  representing federal agencies will discuss current and forthcoming  notices of funding opportunities (NOFO). Attend this session to decrease  your chance of missing out and learn how to best leverage available  programs for your organization.

Chief, Management Operations, District of Columbia Government

Senior Advisor for Implementation, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington D.C.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Budget, U.S. Department of Transportation

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax and Climate Policy, U.S. Department of the Treasury

Lessons Learned in Federal Funds Opportunities

Federal Advocacy

Governments that issue debt must comply with many federal tax regulations over the lifetime of their bonds. With changing interest rate conditions, finance officers need to be especially aware of arbitrage compliance requirements that have not been a great focus in the past few years. Speakers in this session will discuss the federal tax law parameters over municipal securities, and where issuers could see IRS audit inquiries. Topics to be discussed include IRS requirements related to arbitrage compliance, yield restriction, bond proceed spending requirements, monitoring private use of bond-funded projects and record retention obligations, and how governments can develop policies and procedures to manage these requirements.

Chief Assistant County Administrator, Contra Costa County, California, CA

Managing Director, Hilltop Securities Asset Management

Chief Operating Officer / Managing Director, BLX Group, LLC

Hawkins Delafield & Wood LLP

Debt Management

Are you PCI compliant? Governments that accept credit/payment cards have a responsibility to comply with credit card acceptance protocols to prevent fraudulent transactions. These “PCI Compliance” rules continue to evolve and affect every access point where cards are accepted such as online, in person, over the phone, at kiosks, and more. Governments that do not meet these standards can face fines or significant risk. Attend this session to learn about current and upcoming PCI compliance protocols and best practices to implement at your government.

Principal Consultant, Coalfire Systems, Inc.

Chief Financial Officer, Sky Harbor International Airport, Phoenix, AZ

Chief Financial Officer, City of Roseville, CA

Treasury and Investment Management

Did you know that most local governments do not prepare appropriate cash  flow forecasts? GFOA’s best practice on cash flow forecasting discusses  the importance of developing forecasts to ensure your entity’s payables  and liquidity needs are met. Governments can use simple tools to  forecast their largest inflows and outflows to avoid liquidity risks and  develop practical short-term and long-term investment strategies. This  session will provide attendees with key takeaways on the importance of  cash flow forecasting, show how to develop a simple forecast, provide  peer examples of forecasting methods, and advise on how to get started  or improve your entity’s current cash flow forecasting program.

grandrapidsslides.pptx

Session Material: Grand Rapids Cash Flow Case Study

Finance Director, City of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Treasurer, City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Chief Financial Officer and Director of Administrative Services, Midpeninsula Open Space District

Director of Finance/CFO, Town of Gilbert, AZ

The budget process is often referred to as the most consequential in government. However, many staff in government find the steps that organizations go through to create the budget as time consuming, confusing, and outdated. Worse, many approach the process as an experience to survive missing out on great opportunities to innovate and collaborate. Fortunately, there is a better way and all finance officers can learn simple strategies for process improvement that can be applied to their budget process. In this session, join Brian Elms in an interactive workshop to break down key components of the budget process and apply proven process improvement strategies to eliminate waste, achieve better outcomes, and become a leader (and hero) in your organization.

Interactive leadership workshops are limited to 250 individuals per workshop and requires pre-registration.

Founder, Change Agents Training LLC

Leadership Workshop – Common Sense Improvements to the Budget Process

Business Process Improvement

Budgeting and Forecasting

There are many federal government and market initiatives that governments should be aware of as they plan to issue debt and continue to manage their overall debt program. This session will discuss some of the hot topics in the market, including how credit agencies view the sector, the SEC's focus on issuer disclosure matters and new standards coming forward as required in the FDTA, general capital market behavior and investor interests in the municipal bond sector, and other emerging issues. Municipal bond experts will share their thoughts on these matters, and engage with attendees on topics that are important to governments today and in the months and years ahead.

Director of Capital Markets, State of Illinois - Governor's Office of Management and Budget

Managing Director, KBRA

Deputy Director, Office of Municipal Securities, Securities and Exchange Commission

Deputy Director, NYC Office of Management and Budget

Emerging and Hot Topics in Debt Management

Government financial reports are designed to meet the needs of a broad variety of users, most of whom are not accounting professionals. Unfortunately, for many non-accountants, the first reaction to encountering financial statements is likely to be confusion or worse, misunderstanding. This session is designed to equip accounting professionals with a practical and proven approach for explaining governmental financial statements to non-accountants. 

Director of Finance, City of Richardson, TX

Executive Director of Administrative Services, Town of Prosper, TX

Explaining Governmental Accounting to Non-Accountants Without Making Them Dizzy

Accounting and Financial Reporting

Finance officers from around the world have responsibility for managing infrastructure and leaders from across the globe have come together to develop innovative approaches for planning, budgeting, and overall management of these critical assets. In this session, speakers from Australia, New Zealand, and Sweden will provide insight into what is working and what challenges are being faced regionally and nationally. Attend this session to challenge traditional thinking patterns and inherited conditions many governments carry by listening to professionals in other countries engaging in similar work across the globe.

Executive Director, NAMS Canada

CEO, KEF

Chief Executive, IPWEA

President, IPWEA

Asset Management Across the Globe: International Capital Planning and Implementation

Capital Planning and Asset Management

The property tax is the most important revenue stream for local governments. However, research has shown the most significant determinant of property tax for individuals–the assessed value of property–can often have large and systematic inaccuracies. These errors can result in millions of dollars in lost revenue for local governments and shift the tax burden to low-income property owners. In this session, we will examine this problem, the solutions, and what you can do about it, even if you don't have direct responsibility for property assessments.

Professor, University of Chicago

Principal, Urban3

Senior Manager, Research

Are You Losing Revenue from Inaccurate Property Tax Assessments? Unpacking Issues of Equity and Efficiency

Economic Development

Rethinking Revenue

An Urban Wealth Fund is a mechanism for creating ongoing revenue streams from underutilized public sector assets without privatizing the asset. The goal is to create new revenue streams to address our most persistent challenges, such as affordable housing, climate resiliency, and reinvigorating our cities’ infrastructure. Over the last year, GFOA’s “Putting Assets to Work” policy incubator, worked alongside six local governments to assess opportunities and develop policy tools to adapt the “Urban Wealth Fund” concepts common in European and Asian cities for GFOA members. Participants in the incubator will share their experiences and highlight exciting new opportunities for local governments to derive greater value from their assets. We’ll also discuss how your government can get involved in the next incubator as we build on the successes of our first participants.

Director of Fiscal Projects, City of Sugar Land, TX

Director, Economic Development, Harris County Department of Economic Equity & Opportunity, TX

Senior Advisor to the Mayor, Housing, City of Atlanta, GA

Senior Fellow, Sorenson Impact

Putting Assets to Work: Unlocking Value from Publicly-Owned Real Estate

With many governments having a renewed focus on infrastructure, finance officers need to ensure that their organizations can deliver and manage the construction of these large projects. Speakers in this session will discuss the pros and cons of popular contracting and management approaches and innovative concepts for construction projects. Topics include concerns around controlling costs, avoiding delays, and dealing with inflation, supply chain shortages, and other realities of today's environment. Attendees will learn the importance of collaboration and the role that finance, procurement, and engineering can play in delivering successful projects.

Lead Consultant, WSP, San Francisco, CA

Deputy Chief Financial Officer, City of Austin, TX

Procurement Manager, City of Everett, WA

Alternative Contracting for Construction Projects

Procurement

Government leaders make decisions for a living. With good decision making, they can greatly improve the lives of their constituents and further their own careers. But decision making is messy. It is often done by groups, so there are conflicting points of view. It is usually time constrained, so there isn’t time to consider everything. There is always uncertainty, usually more than we realize. And it is done by humans, so it comes with the myriad of well-documented psychological biases. Finance officers can help their organization make better decisions by "architecting" the decision-making environment. In this session, we will discuss the key skills of a decision architect, how finance officers have used them, and how you can build them.

Director of Internal Audit and Strategic Projects, Northshore School District, WA

CEO, Strategic Government Resource

Executive Director, Budget Services, Atlanta Public Schools

Executive Director, Illinois Government Finance Officers Association

The Budget Officer as Decision Architect: Designing the Decision-Making Environment

Rethinking Budgeting

Nearly all local governments are having difficulty filling vacant positions these days. Hiring challenges clearly affect a government's operations and ability to meet service level expectations, but they can also complicate the development of the budget by introducing new layers of uncertainty. Will we be able to fill all of our open positions? Will we have to increase starting salaries to attract candidates? Will we have to pay more in overtime to continue meeting service demands? How do we budget salary and benefit expenses for positions that remain vacant? This session will explore these questions and more and provide tips for developing a personnel budget that fits the realities of today's compensation and recruiting environment and is consistent with budgeting best practices. 

Chief Financial Officer, Norwalk Public Schools

Executive Analyst, King County Office of Performance, Strategy and Budget, WA

Assistant City Manager/Finance Director, City of Tualtin, Oregon

Prosper Portland, OR

Position Budgeting Amid the Hiring Crisis

Struggling to recruit qualified candidates to apply for your vacant positions? Does it seem like your burdensome hiring process makes it difficult to land your top candidates? GFOA knows the ability to hire new employees quickly is critical for all areas of government, but especially for finance. Join this session to uncover common sense strategies for streamlining your hiring process, build a better working relationship with the human resources department, and develop a strategy for avoiding errors  many governments make in recruiting talent. 

Director of Human Resources, Pierce County, WA

Miracle Pill: Practical Solutions to Fix Your Hiring Process

Do you struggle to get others to pay attention to financial and budgetary reports? Do you want to move beyond transparency efforts that do little but take staff time to produce? How can efforts to communicate financial information actually promote accountability and work towards building trust? In this session, you will learn tips on how to get individuals–internal stakeholders, the public, and elected officials–interested in your financial story to improve understanding of your financial position, encourage engagement, and promote more effective decision making.

Associate Director, Budget & Finance, Council Services, City of Albuquerque, NM

President, We The Creative, Irvine, CA

Marketing Your Financials: How to Get Others Interested in Your Financial Data

One positive outcome of the pandemic was the ability of governments to  leverage technology in creative ways to solve complex problems quickly.  Governments are continuing this trend long after the crisis.  This  session highlights examples of how peer governments are using technology  to improve operations.  Governments will explain why the technology was  implemented, the resources required for performance management, and  provide an honest assessment on whether or not the intended outcome was  reached. Participants will learn when and how to drive technology  solutions and when not to utilize these systems. 

Director of Finance, Wichita Public Schools, KS

PMO/Administration Division Manager, Washington County, OR

Technology Services Manager

Curbside & Admin Services Director, City of Eugene, OR

ERP Systems and Technology

ESG has become a common term in nearly every finance officer’s vocabulary, but it may not be clear how to differentiate buzzword from strategy. In this session, speakers will explain the environmental (E), social (S), and governmental (G) factors that play a role in project planning, labeling bonds, disclosure, procurement regulations, and more. In addition, speakers will provide the latest best practices for incorporating ESG based on successful case studies, lessons learned, and ongoing evolution of this field.


Controller, Office of the Controller, City of Houston, Texas

Chief Financial Officer, Iowa Finance Authority

Assistant County Administrative Officer, County of Tulare, California

Capital Finance Director, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, CA

Unscrupulous actors are attempting to infiltrate government’s treasury operations in many ways. No organization is safe or completely protected. It is imperative to make sure your entity has both appropriate policies and procedures to prevent fraud and an action plan if it occurs. This session will provide guidance on how to implement effective policies and practices to help prevent all types of fraudulent activities and better protect your organization. 

City Treasurer, City of Grand Rapids, MI

Managing Director, JP Morgan Chase

When the 117th Congress concluded in December 2022, the municipal market was quite surprised by a little-known provision riding along on the National Defense Authorization Act. And yet, the Financial Data Transparency Act will not only radically transform the technology for financial reporting, but also insert the federal government as rulemakers in state and local government financial reporting. There is no doubt that this effort will require substantial outreach to federal government over the next several years. Come to this session to understand the concepts, the processes, and the opportunities for this needed outreach.

Chair, Governmental Accounting Standards Board

Director, Federal Liaison Center

Associate Treasurer, Debt & Grants Management, Government of the District of Columbia, OCFO

Director of Finance, City of Alexandria, VA

Financial Data Transparency Act Explained: What Finance Officers Need to Know

A core value of public procurement is the use of a fair, open, and  unbiased competitive process to award contracts. However, it's  impossible to eliminate all bias when we rely on humans, each with their  own unique experiences, knowledge, and background, for evaluating  options. In this session, speakers will discuss strategies for  addressing bias, ensuring that existing "knowledge" doesn't reduce  innovation, and  that vendors are evaluated on the merits of their  proposal. Attend this session to learn how procurement can leverage  lessons learned from behavioral science to make better decisions. 

Professor, Arizona State University

Contracts Officer, Oregon Business Development Department, Salem, OR

Removing Bias in Bid Evaluations:  Best Practices in Evaluation Techniques

December 31, 2024, the final date to obligate your ARPA funds, is quickly approaching. Yet new spending categories are still being fleshed out. What does your government need to do to prepare for spending the last of your ARPA funds? Speakers in this session will identify key dates, discuss the potential for upcoming announcements, and answer questions from attendees as we approach the end of the covered period. 

Assistant Director of Finance, City of San Antonio, TX

Chief Compliance and Finance Officer, U.S. Department of Treasury, Office of Recovery Programs

Federal Grants Manager, Department of Finance, City and County of Denver, CO

Controller, City of Austin, TX

Director, State & Local Recovery Funds, U.S. Department of Treasury, Office of Recovery Programs

ARPA Closeout: Gearing up for December 31, 2024

Funding the construction of infrastructure, facilities, and other assets  is not easy and at times, governments need to consider creative options  to provide necessary solutions. Beyond debt financing, pay-as-you-go,  and grant funding, finance officers have used  a variety of ways to pay  for their capital projects including use of private funds, interfund  borrowing, microfinancing, and more. However, not all ideas are good  ones. In this session, speakers will provide attendees with  considerations for different funding options, the pros and cons of each,  and how to determine what works best for your government. 

Vice President, Public Finance Banker, D.A. Davidson & Co.

Treasurer, City of St. Paul, Minnesota

Debt Manager, City of Portland, OR

Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal Public Sector Services

Variety is the Spice of Life: Options for Successful Capital Financing Strategies

Governments are subject to financial shocks, including natural catastrophes, recessions, and more. Financial reserves (a “rainy day” fund) are essentially a form of self-insurance that governments use to buffer themselves against these risks. But what are the risks governments should be concerned about? What size of reserves is appropriate to cover risks? What opportunities are there to use commercial insurance to help cover these risks? Speakers in this session will answer these questions and more. Attendees will leave with resources and strategies to apply risk-aware and risk-savvy thinking to reserves in their own organizations.

Manager, Fiscal Federalism, The Pew Charitable Trusts

Assistant Town Manager, Town of Bluffton, SC

Global Head of Climate Risk Advisory, Aon

No Easy Answers: Risks, Uncertainty, and Reserves.

Will the market favor issuers in the months ahead? With the dynamics of  the capital markets evolving, governments are having to think through  different pricing variables, structures and products, as they consider  issuing debt. Market experts will discuss observations and outlooks for  the market generally, and specifically to issuers of municipal debt.  This is especially true regarding dampened issuance levels and the  opportunities and concerns this presents for governments. Understanding  market trends and practices as well as future expectations will help  governments as they plan their entities' capital plans, and options for  paying for this vital infrastructure. 

Head of Public Policy and Municipal Strategy, HilltopSecurities Inc.

VP Senior Analyst, Moody's

Assistant Financial Officer, City of Raleigh, NC

Debt Market Dynamics and Your Capital Planning Needs

GFOA's Federal Liaison Center keeps a watchful eye on congressional and regulatory activity in Washington, D.C., for members. Now that the 117th Congress has come to an end, we can look back and evaluate the overall impact on government and the public finance profession. In this session, speakers will highlight major actions, what has improved, what has not, and what finance officers need to be aware of now.  Also, attendees will hear what to watch for in the coming year from our federal government representatives.

Senior Policy Advisor

Policy Analyst

Policy Associate

Year in Washington, D.C.: Federal Updates

Hear remarks from GFOA President Terri Velasquez, CPA, CPFO and Michael C. Bush. Michael is CEO of Great Place to Work®. Michael will share stories of how the best workplaces outperform their peers and how you can build a winning culture in your organization. Using an inclusive approach to leadership, attendees will learn how to maximize the potential of your team by tapping into the intelligence, skills, and passion of everyone in the organization.

GFOA Past President, Finance Director, City of Aurora, CO

Monday Keynote.

Budgeting is a political process. "Politics" is often considered a dirty word in our profession, but the finance officer needs to not just survive a political environment, but thrive in it. This can be done without succumbing to the worst aspects of politics. In this session we will talk about common political power plays the finance officer might encounter, the sources of the finance officer's own political power, and how to ethically exercise that power and redirect potentially destructive political impulses to more productive outcomes.

Chief Deputy Contoller, City of Los Angeles, CA

President, Funkhouser & Associates

Budget Officer, City of Kansas City, MO

Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Metro, Portland, OR

Politics in Budgeting: Don't Hate the Player, Don't Hate the Game, Change the Game

There are hundreds of billions of dollars of infrastructure in the ground at all levels of government that we depend on every day. The planning and resourcing that went into these assets represent years of design, implementation, and financial commitment. What actions are governments taking to ensure they are designed and maintained to be resilient? How can governments invest in existing assets so they are available for years to come? How do we balance these infrastructure needs with the realities of what our community can afford? Speakers in this session will focus on sustainability and stewardship in all aspects of the push to find resilience through investments for both existing and new assets.

Executive Director, Natural Assets Initiative, British Columbia, Canada

Undersecretary, Louisiana DOTD

Director of Finance and Asset Management, District of Oak Bay

Senior Manager, Research and Consulting

Resiliency for Capital Assets in times of Environmental Change

Hear remarks from GFOA Executive Director Chris Morrill and keynote speaker Eduardo Briceño. Eduardo is one of the world’s leading experts on growth mindset and workplace learning. He will speak to GFOA conference attendees about how to foster a growth mindset—the belief that one’s abilities and qualities can be developed—and about habits and systems that foster growth.

Sunday Keynote

Executive Director/CEO

While finance and procurement often provide different functions, their work is unquestionably linked. Many processes outside of finance depend on information from procurement to be effective. In this session, speakers will explore how finance and procurement can create a better and more collaborative relationship and drive improved outcomes for both departments. Speakers will explore this connection and the benefits to budgeting, long-term planning, cash flow analysis, debt management, accounting, risk management, and more.

Founder and Principal Consultant, Civic Initiatives, LLC

Director of Purchasing and Contracting, County of San Diego, CA

Better Together: Practical Strategies for Integrating Finance and Procurement

As Canadian governments work to confront workforce, revenue, and expenditure challenges in today's new fiscal environment, GFOA is working to build a stronger network of Canadian finance officers to share best practices, develop relationships, trade stories and experiences, and learn from each other’s collective knowledge. In this session, leading Canadian finance officers will discuss the challenges faced by their jurisdiction and the approaches to overcome them. In addition, attend to hear about plans for GFOA's new Community for Canadian Issues and learn how you can become more involved.

Note: Immediately following this session, GFOA will be hosting a lunch discussion/networking event for Canadian GFOA members


Executive Director, Municipal Finance Officers of Ontario

Ever feel like you and your colleagues in the Fire Department just  aren't speaking the same language? If so, you're not alone, and this  session is for you. GFOA and the International Association of Fire  Chiefs (IAFC) are working together to develop resources to promote  better collaboration between finance officers and fire chiefs. This  panel discussion will feature both finance officers and fire personnel  talking about how to improve communication between these two departments  and address the many challenges that make capital planning, budgeting,  purchasing, and other areas of public finance uniquely difficult for the  fire service. 

CFO, Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue, Tualatin, OR

Battalion Staff Captain, Portland Fire & Rescue, Portland, OR

Fire Chief/Emergency Management Director, Fitchburg Fire Department, WI

Assistant Director Fire Management Services, City of AUrora, CO

Deputy Director, Portland Fire & Rescue, OR

CFO, Cowichan Valley Regional District

Finance on Fire: Overcoming Issues with Budgeting for Fire Services

For decades, finance officers and governments have recognized the need to improve public engagement in the budget process. Public engagement is often limited to a public hearing or two, which typically happens after important decisions have been made and often amount to little more than a chance for people to air grievances. GFOA's Rethinking Public Engagement initiative brought together top experts from across the country to take a fresh look at public engagement. In this session, you will hear about  key lessons learned and how you can get involved in a cohort of local governments that will work towards better public engagement in their communities.

Head of Research and Engagement, Center for New Democratic Processes

Executive Director, Center for New Democratic Processes

Performance and Process Analyst, City of Bellevue, WA

Budget Analyst, Office of Budget, City of Detroit, MI

Rethinking Public Engagement for Budgeting

Hear remarks from Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, and Incoming GFOA President Laura Allen, CPFO, ICMA-CM. GFOA President Terri Velasquez, CPA, CPFO will preside over the session. Erica Dhawan will deliver the keynote address. Erica is an internationally recognized leading authority, speaker and advisor on 21st century teamwork, collaboration and innovation. Erica will share innovative strategies to unlock the collective power of teams, build a culture of trust across any distance that finance officers can use with peers, co-workers, and members of the public.

GFOA President, Budget Analyst III, Capital Budgeting, Maryland Department of Budget and Management

Mayor, City of Portland, OR

Tuesday Keynote

General Session & Annual Business Meeting

Each year, GFOA gathers experts within the technology industry to discuss the latest cybersecurity threat trends and potential ways to mitigate them. This year, speakers will not only address recent threats but will also discuss strategies bad actors are using to obtain technologies to implement hacks with limited technical experience. At the end of the session, participants will achieve a better understanding of their cybersecurity risk by being more aware of potential vulnerabilities, understanding potential sources of threats, and gaining insights into resources available to mitigate them.

Principal, Barrett and Greene, Inc.

Head of Cybersecurity, AC Transit, Oakland, CA

Cybersecurity State Coordinator/Advisor, DHS-CISA

Not Crying Wolf: The Latest in Cybersecurity Protections for Your Government

People need to be able to believe what they hear about a local government’s finances. They need to be confident that local leaders have the community’s best interest at heart. If people are to contribute resources to the local government, they need to trust that those resources will be transformed into something of value. At this session, you will hear real-life stories from finance officers of how they've won (or lost) trust through their careers. You will leave with ideas for how you can build trust in your own career.

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2023 Annual Conference Sessions: Smarter School Spending

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Sessions for Sunday, May 21

Smarter School Spending: Navigating the Intersection of Instructional Goals and Finance

Sessions for Monday, May 22

Smarter School Spending: Using Analytical Reviews

Sessions for Tuesday, May 23

No smarter school spending sessions for May 23

Sessions for Wednesday, May 24

No smarter school spending sessions for May 24