Government Financial Officers Association

The Government Finance Officers Association (or GFOA) is a professional association of approximately 17,500 state, provincial, and local government finance officers in the United States

Local government in the United States

Local government in the United States is generally structured in accordance with the laws of the various individual states. Typically each state has at least two separate tiers: counties and municipalities. Some states have their counties divided into townships...

and Canada.

The original predecessor of GFOA was the National Association of Comptrollers and Accounting Officers which was formed in February 1906. Its name was changed in December 1931 to the International Association of Municipal Finance Officers. In June 1932, the name became the Municipal Finance Officers Association (MFOA).

In 1973, the GFOA (then MFOA) was instrumental in the creation of the National Council on Governmental Accounting (NCGA). By the late 1970s, it was apparent that the NCGA couldn't fully do its job, due to part-time members and limited resources. Several public interest groups, including the GFOA and the National Association of State Auditors Comptrollers and Treasurers (NASACT), held public hearings to build consensus to create and fund a full-time standards-setting body. In 1984, the GFOA, NASACT, and others signed an agreement with the Financial Accounting Foundation that gave them a voice and appointments in the creation of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board

Governmental Accounting Standards Board

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board is currently the source of generally accepted accounting principles used by State and Local governments in the United States of America...

(GASB). The name Government Finance Officers Association was adopted in April 1984. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa5346/is_200803/ai_n25139590/

The GFOA sponsors award programs designed to encourage good financial reporting, for financial documents including the Comprehensive annual financial report

Comprehensive annual financial report

A Comprehensive Annual Financial Report is a set of government financial statements comprising the financial report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity that complies with the accounting requirements—generally accepted accounting principles —promulgated by the Financial Accounting...

, or CAFR, and the annual budget. They also sponsor the Frank L. Greathouse Government Scholarship each year for use by a college senior preparing for a career in state or local government finance.

As part of the commitment to professional development, the GFOA offers a Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO) certification program. To earn the CPFO, candidates must pass five examinations covering the major areas of public finance. Once earned, the CPFO designation requires 30 hours of continuing professional education each year.

See also