Public Finance Leadership Academy Curriculum
Public Finance Leadership Academy Curriculum
Prerequisites: Successful completion of the Level II Finance Officer Certification or completion of Level I with progress towards Level II. Alternatively, candidates who hold certain financial professional designations: Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM), Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO) will be eligible for consideration without meeting the Level I and Level II requirement.
Who Should Attend? This course is for local government accounting and financial reporting professionals and others responsible for oversight and administration of a local government’s finances.
Advance Preparation: None
Program Level: Advanced
| Session Name | Session Overview | Learning Objectives | Field of Study | CPE/CEU/Contact Hours | Delivery Methods |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leadership and Effective Communication October 29-30, 2024 UGA Center for Continuing Education and Hotel |
This session will convey the importance of self-awareness and effectively communicating at all levels of government and with the public. Participants will complete an assessment instrument to learn more about their respective leadership style. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: discuss how self-awareness is important when leading a work team, explain benefits of collaboration, process improvement, and group team building, describe the importance of political perception and awareness including financial versus political decisions, and recognize public values and policy choices | Personal Development | 13.2 CPE, 1.2 CEU, 12 Contact Hours | Group Live |
| Government Structure and Operations November 7, 2024 9 a.m. - Noon Hybrid |
This session will review the structure of government in Georgia, open meetings open records requirements, ethics, and contracts. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: describe the structure of Georgia local government, recall open meetings open records requirements, discuss the importance of contracts, and recognize the importance of ethics in all government interactions. | Specialized Knowledge - Technical | 3.6 CPE, .3 CEU, 3 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Internal Control November 7, 2024 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Hybrid |
This session will cover the five interrelated components of internal control to various scenarios as a means of identifying and mitigating risks in operations and financial reporting. Participants will learn how to effectively communicate to the governing body their fiduciary responsibility and oversight role. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: Identify the five components of internal control, apply the five components to various transaction cycles to mitigate risks inherent in these cycles, discuss the importance of well-developed job descriptions in strengthening the control environment, discuss how the development of policies and procedures mitigate risks and emulate best practices, discuss cyber security and its threat to internal control, and discuss how to design an on-boarding process to educate elected officials about their "ultimate" fiduciary responsibility for internal control. | Auditing – Technical | 7.9 CPE, .7 CEU, 7 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Public Human Resource Management December 12, 2024 Hybrid |
This session will cover the functions of public human resource management and the legal standards that govern such functions. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: describe the importance of human resource management and demonstrate how to navigate predefined human resource situations. | Personnel/ Human Resources | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Treasury Management and Cash Flow Forecasting January 16, 2025 Virtual Live |
This session will provide an overview of the components of a cash and investment policy and advanced treasury management concepts. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: recall the essential components of a cash and investment policy, discuss the importance of cash flow forecasting, recall the steps involved in preparing a cash flow forecast, and prepare a cash flow forecast. | Finance-Technical | 3.6 CPE, .3 CEU, 3 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Advanced Debt Issuance February 5, 2025 Hybrid |
This session will introduce the participant to advanced concepts related to the issuance and management of public debt. Participants will explore the components of a debt policy as well as best practices in issuing and managing public debt. Participants will assemble a financing team for a mock public bond issue and learn to navigate: the process, bond and other disclosure documents, and their fiduciary responsibilities. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: identify purposes for which debt may be issued, discuss roles and responsibilities of the various individuals involved in the issuance of public debt, differentiate between the different types of public debt instruments, execute a financing plan for a public project, examine bond and disclosure documents used in a public financing, and recall continuing disclosure requirements. | Finance – Technical | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Economic Development February 19, 2025 Hybrid |
This course will introduce the participant to the fundamentals of economic development. Participants will explore the different types of development authorities in Georgia and learn the basics of financing economic development and deal structuring. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: Identify the different types of development authorities in Georgia; recall the basics of financing economic development and deal structuring; discuss how to analyze the costs and benefits of a potential economic development project; tax incentives (abatements), and contractual debt obligations (intergovernmental agreements). | Economics - Technical | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Budgeting for Long-Term Sustainability March 4, 2025 Hybrid |
As financial stewards, public finance professionals know that budget decisions made today impact a local government’s financial health well into the future. This session provides an overview of the interrelationship between short-term budgeting, capital budgeting, fiscal policies, and strategic planning as a means to promote long-term financial sustainability. Participants will also learn how to use key financial indicators to assess a government's overall financial health. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: discuss what sustainability means in a budgeting context, recall strategies for increasing long-term efficiencies, discuss the interconnectedness of long-range plans with fiscal sustainability, evaluate the financial condition of a government, and analyze fiscal policies that promote sustainability. | Finance-Technical | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Millage Rate Process March 26, 2025 Hybrid |
This session provides an overview of the millage rate process in Georgia. Participants will learn about laws applicable to tax digest valuation and setting millage rates, calculating rollbacks and recall the key players in the property tax process. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: recite definitions of key terminology, recall the key players in the property tax process, discuss three different views of property taxes, calculate property tax based on digest and millage rate values, discuss required elements of a digest submission package, and calculate required rollbacks for local option sales tax (LOST) and Insurance Premium Taxes. | Finance-Technical | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Data Visualization and Creating Dashboards April 9, 2025 Virtual Live |
This session will prepare participants to tell the story of their governments' finances through the use of dashboards and other visualization techniques. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: recount the tools available for data visualization, discuss data visualization options for communicating various kinds of financial data. | Finance-Technical | 3.6 CPE, 3 CEU, 3 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Preparing the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) April 23-24, 2025 Hybrid |
The session will provide an overview of a government's externally issued financial statements. Participants will learn about the financial reporting entity and take a deep dive into the introductory, financial, and statistical sections of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: recognize unique accounting transactions associated with governmental accounting (e.g., fiduciary activities, leases, pensions and OPEB), subscription-based internet technology agreements, and post-closure care liabilities, recognize what constitutes the reporting entity and methods of presenting component units, recall what is included within each section of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, and perform a reconciliation from the fund financial statements to the government-wide financial statements. | Accounting-Governmental | 13.2 CPE, 1.2 CEU, 12 Contact Hours | Group Live |
| Preparing for the Audit May 1, 2025 UGA Gwinnett |
This course will provide an overview of auditor and auditee responsibilities that will help financial statement preparers take responsibility for their governments' financial statements, issue the statements in a timely manner, and achieve better audit results. | At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: discuss their entity's responsibilities relating to identification and acceptance of an external auditor; implementation, maintenance and documentation of internal controls over financial reporting; preparation, review, approval, and acceptance of the financial statements; specific audit procedures performed by the auditor and the need for assistance by entity personnel; and audit close-out and reporting requirements. | Auditing - Technical | 6.6 CPE, .6 CEU, 6 Contact Hours |
Group Live |
| Capstone project | The Capstone project is intended to demonstrate the participant’s ability to apply the skills and knowledge acquired during the program as well as provide a direct benefit to their government. | At the end of the project, the participant will be able to apply concepts learned in the program to assist with resolving an issue facing their local government. | Finance-Technical | QAS Self-Study | |
| Totals | 82 Contact Hours 8.2 CEU 91.90 CPE |
*During hybrid sessions, participants have the option of receiving instruction for this session in-person or virtual-live, via Zoom. Our UGA classrooms are equipped with cameras and technology that will provide remote participants the opportunity to interact with the instructor and their peers as if they were in the classroom on campus.
University of Georgia, Carl Vinson Institute of Government, is registered with the
National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing
professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy
have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints
regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors
through its website: https://www.nasbaregistry.org.
Questions? Contact Us.
John Hulsey
Faculty
jhulsey@uga.edu
678.622.3756