Government Finance Review

The establishment of the Data Processing Committee by the Oregon Municipal Finance Officers Assn is discussed. The committee is tasked with training association members in the use of software appropriate to the practice of their profession. It is also tasked with coordinating the association's efforts to automate routine tasks through the use of computers among association members. The committee is helping foster closer working relationships among Oregon finance officers.

Campaign contributions and municipal bonds.

The influence exerted by campaign contributions on the issuance of municipal bonds The US Congress is proposing a legislative measure that would require brokers and underwriters to report campaign contributions to state and local elected officials. The proposed measure is intended to minimize the effect of campaign contributions on the issuance of municipal bonds. However, the measure is being opposed because it would lead to the duplication of current state laws on campaign contributions. A...

Canada-U.S. Tax Comparisons.

Federal regulation of the municipal bond market.

A review of the regulatory structure for the municipal bonds market is being proposed by the US Congress after recent reports on the possible influence exerted by certain groups on the selection process for underwriters of state and local government bonds. Several members of Congress have even gone so far as to propose changes in the regulatory structure. These proposals should be carefully studied before they are approved by the government.

Lessons of receivership: the legacy of Chelsea.

Massachusetts The mounting political and economic problems faced by Chelsea, MA, in 1991 prompted the state government to place the city under the control of a receiver, who was granted the powers ordinarily given to the city mayor and other city officials. The receiver, who is expected to remain in office until 1996, has taken into account views of leading members of the community as well as public officials on ways to tackle the community's problems. Efforts to solve the problems have so f...

Proposed changes in enterprise fund accounting.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is currently studying proposed changes in the accounting and financial reporting methods of enterprise funds. These funds are often used by state and local governments in accounting for revenues raised from the operations of utilities and other government-operated activities that approximate the operations of private businesses. The GASB currently requires government-owned enterprise funds to use generally-accepted accounting principles devel...

Provincial fiscal perspective.

Canada's public-sector fiscal deficit Provincial government deficits constitute a significant part of the growing public-sector fiscal deficit in Canada, with Ontario's provincial budget deficit accounting for more than 50% of the total public-sector deficit in the country. Among the reasons for the increase in government deficit are the early stage of implementation of budgetary reforms in the provincial government level and spending pressures that can be traced to the economic recession th...

Quality tools are applicable to local government.

Adoption of Total Quality Management by local governments Three of the quality tools used in Total Quality Management, which is increasingly being used by local governments, are discussed. These tools include flow charts, control charts and cause-and-effect diagrams. Flow charts are suitable in determining quality costs, which are divided into prevention, inspection and appraisal, internal failure and external failure costs. Control charts are used in determining random or unique variation i...

Reshaping state and local budgeting.

The increasing complexities of budgeting on the state and local government level call for a change in current budgetary practices by state and local governments. Present state and local budgeting methods are insufficient in solving problems faced by budgetary authorities in the light of present realities. A task force formed by the Government Finance Officers Assn is currently studying ways to improve budgetary policies of state and local governments.

Residential community associations: their impact on local government finance and politics.

Decisions by state and local governments regarding land use in their respective areas of jurisdiction in the US are increasingly being influenced by the lobbying efforts of residential community associations. These associations are proposing the passage of state laws requiring state and local governments to grant property tax rebates to association members for services that were supposed to be provided by local governments but were provided by the associations themselves. However, these propo...

Sales Taxation: Critical Issues in Policy and Administration.

Shadow Government: The Hidden World of Public Authorities - And How They Control $1 Trillion of Your Money.

Superfund liability dumped onto local governments.

Includes related article Local government finances are increasingly being threatened by the growing number of lawsuits filed by several major corporations against local governments. These corporations contend that local governments, which are in charge of collecting household wastes from citizens residing within their respective areas of jurisdiction, should share the cleanup costs of municipal landfills, as required under the provisions of the CERCLA.

Surveys of state and local government employee retirement systems.

Includes related article Two surveys on the employee retirement systems of state and local governments were discussed. The surveys were conducted by the Public Pension Coordinating Council in 1991 and 1992. Trend analyses of the responses of persons were done to determine trends regarding employee retirement systems during the years when the surveys were conducted. Results indicate that there were no significant changes in the financial conditions of the retirement systems and that these sys...

Thoughts on the Chelsea receivership.

City in Massachusetts There are lessons to be gleaned from the receivership of Chelsea, MA. Foremost of these is the need to examine rules pertaining to the practices of the government for the accomplishment of long-lasting reform. The competing interests traditionally present in politics on the national and local level make it difficult for the receivership to focus on its primary goal, although much progress has already been done in tackling the problems faced by the city.