2023 Local Government Training Conference

Office of the State Auditor Logo

Office of the Minnesota State Auditor
Local Government Training Conference
(Presented Virtually)
November 29, 2023

The Office of the State Auditor is partnering with the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers (NASACT) to present our annual Local Government Training Conference on Wednesday, November 29, 2023. The conference is being presented virtually (online).

For more information about the conference including the agenda and to register, please go to the conference page on NASACT website.

In order to register, you will need to create a NASACT profile. You will be prompted to create the profile when you click on the register button. There are both CPE and Non-CPE options for registration.

If you have questions on registering, please contact Tanya Grayson at NASACT at (859) 276-1147 or tgrayson@nasact.org. For other questions about the conference, please contact Tom Karlson at 651-296-4715 or email training@osa.state.mn.us.

 

CONFERENCE AGENGA

7:45-7:55             Log in to Webinar

7:55-8:00            Administrative Announcements

8:00-8:10            Welcome from State Auditor Blaha

8:10-9:50            Governmental Accounting Update – Dean Michael Mead

Field of study: Accounting (Government) CPE: 1.5 (75 minutes)

This session is an update on the latest accounting standards issues by the GASB and/or being implemented this year. Dean also will highlight what else is coming from the GASB, including projects on updating the financial reporting model, recognizing revenues and expenditures and note disclosures.

9:50-10:05          Morning Break

10:05-11:05         Legal Compliance Update – David Kenney JD, Assistant Legal Counsel, and

Mark Kerr, JD, CFE, Assistant Legal Counsel/Director of Special Investigations. Office of the Minnesota State Auditor

Field of study: Business Law CPE: 1 (50 minutes); applied for CLE: 1 (60 minutes)

This annual update will provide attendees with information about recent Minnesota compliance issues, law changes affecting local governments, and the results of recent special investigations.

11:10-12:00         GASB Implementation Guides

Dean Michael Mead returns to discuss one of the best resources for implementing new and old GASB pronouncements. He will discuss the status of the implementation guides in the governmental accounting hierarchy.HR will finish by highlighting some significant Q&As from the guides.

12:00–1:00          Break for Lunch

1:00-2:40            Crypto Hacks. Headlines and Scandals, Governance for Emerging Technologies –

Dana Lawrence

Field of study: Accounting (Government) CPE: 2.0 (100 minutes)

More and more, we are reading news headlines about crypto hacks, fintech fraud related to Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, and emerging technology that ultimately causes harm to everyday people. Artificial intelligence technology continues to dominate the news cycles. How do we stay on top of the risks and keep our agencies and communities safe? Notably, the rise and fall of cryptocurrency exchange FTX is a historic failure of internal control that will likely lead to fundamental shifts in governance and regulation for the digital asset industry and emerging technologies overall. It is vital that government auditors understand key themes related to emerging technology, digital assets, the major takeaways from these events and more broadly how to support appropriate governance in areas of emerging technology.

2:40-2:55            Afternoon Break

2:55- 3:45           SBITAs – Louis Stratton, CPa

Field of study: Accounting (Government) CPE: 1.0 (50 minutes)

We have implemented the new requirements for accounting and reporting for leases. Now what? The GASB has issued Statement No. 96, Subscription-Based Information Technology Arrangements (SBITA). What is a SBITA? Why do we need to account for them? How do we account for them? How are they different from leases? Loiuis Stratton will endeavor to answer these questions.

3:45-4:35            THE Latest and Greatest – Tom Karlson. CPA

Field of study: Accounting (Government) CPE: 1.0 (50 minutes)

In this session Tom Karlson will talk about recent events, activities, issues, and news impacting Minnesota local governments.

4:35                    Sessions Completed