Follow the Money

Financial officers finally are having some success getting government's books in order.

Fifteen years ago, the 1990 Chief Financial Officers Act launched a host of legal reforms aimed at making federal agencies more accountable. Using the CFO Act and subsequent laws-including the 1994 Government Management Reform Act, the 1996 Federal Financial Management Improvement Act and the 2002 Accountability of Tax Dollars Act-Congress and the Clinton and Bush administrations have sought to tame the unruly world of federal accounting.

They've had some success. Last year, 22 of the 24 major federal agencies met an accelerated reporting schedule for submitting 2004 performance and accountability reports, including audited financial statements. Reports were due Nov. 15, just 45 days after the close of the fiscal year. Such timely reporting would have been unthinkable for most agencies just a few years ago.

The quality of reports also has im-proved. Auditors gave 18 agencies a clean bill of health for their financial statements and one, the Small Business Administration, received a qualified opinion after auditors identified problems in financial reporting. Officials at the Office of Management and Budget expect that SBA's 2005 financial statement will receive a clean audit.

Five agencies, NASA and the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, and Justice, received disclaimers on their audits. By far, the biggest financial problem in government is Defense. Comptroller General David M. Walker estimates it will be years before Defense is able to produce reliable financial information.

Defense's problems notwithstanding, the Association of Government Accountants reports that federal financial management is improving. This month, the AGA will recognize 11 agencies for achieving high standards in accountability reporting: Interior, Labor, Education, Energy, State, Federal Aviation Administration, Government Accountability Office, General Services Administration, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Patent and Trademark Office, and the Social Security Administration.

Officials worry about progress, however. In a July white paper, AGA noted that "a wave of retirements has meant an exodus of brainpower" in government accounting shops and "few accounting graduates see government as an attractive career option."

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICERS

• Patricia Healy
  Agriculture: Acting Chief Financial Officer
• Otto Wolff
  Commerce: Assistant Secretary for Administration, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer, Chief Human Capital Officer
• Tina W. Jonas
  Defense: Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller), Chief Financial Officer
• John G. Vonglis
  Air Force: Acting Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management, Acting Comptroller
• Valerie Lynn Baldwin
  Army: Assistant Secretary for Financial Management, Comptroller
• Richard Greco Jr.
  Navy: Comptroller, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management
• Jack Martin
  Education: Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer
• Susan J. Grant
  Energy: Chief Financial Officer, Director of the Office of Management, Budget and Evaluation
• Kathleen Turco
  General Services Administration: Chief Financial Officer
• Charles E. Johnson
  Health and Human Services: Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Secretary for Budget, Technology and Finance
• Andrew B. Maner
  Homeland: Security Chief Financial Officer
• George J. Tomchick III
  Housing and Urban Development: Acting Deputy Chief Financial Officer
• Lynn Scarlett
  Interior: Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer
• Paul R. Corts
  Justice: Assistant Attorney General for Administration, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer
• Samuel Tinsing Mok
  Labor: Chief Financial Officer
• Gwendolyn Sykes
  NASA: Chief Financial Officer
• Clarence C. Crawford
  Office of Personnel Management: Chief Financial Officer
• Dale W. Sopper
  Social Security Administration: Deputy Commissioner for Finance, Assessment and Management, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer
• Sid Kaplan
  State: Acting Chief Financial Officer
• Phyllis F. Scheinberg
  Transportation: Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs, Chief Financial Officer
• Sandra Pack
  Treasury: Assistant Secretary for Management, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer
• Rita Reed
  Veterans Affairs: Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget