Governmental Accounting & Auditing Conference (2 days)

David R. Bean is the director of research and technical activities for the Governmental Accounting Standards Board. He assigns and provides oversight to the GASB's research, technical, and administrative activities. Prior to joining the GASB in 1990, David worked in public accounting and government. He also has served as Deputy Chairman of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB). He was the lead author on the 1988 Governmental Accounting, Auditing and Financial Reporting and was the founder of the GAAFR Review. He was the last director of the National Council on Governmental Accounting before the formation of the GASB in 1984. David is a member of the Government Finance Officers Association, the Connecticut and Illinois Government Finance Officers Associations, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Illinois CPA Society, the Association of Government Accountants, the National Federation of Municipal Analysts, and the Municipal Analysts Group of New York.

(2/2/17)

Christa has over 17 years of experience in local government finance, including auditing of local municipalities, and managing state and county finances. In 2022, Christa left Clackamas County to permanently work at home and spend more time with her 3 daughters. She continues to provide support to local governments as a consultant and spends her free time homeschooling, gardening, and raising backyard chickens.

Susan is the Finance and Accounting Services Manager for the City of Gresham, within the Department of Finance and Management Services. She has worked for the City of Gresham since March 2015 after almost 16 years working for Multnomah County in various roles within the Finance Division. Accounting Services at the City is responsible for the City's financial management and reporting including cash, investment and debt management, financial analysis, general ledger, capital and cost accounting, grant accounting, internal control management, annual financial audit and preparation of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, and various other accounting and reporting functions. Susan is a member of several professional organizations, including GFOA, OGFOA, AICPA and AGA, and has presented at various conferences regarding the implementation of new audit and accounting standards.

Amy John joined the Secretary of State Audits Division in 2000 as a staff auditor and has spent 20 years leading financial and federal compliance audits for a variety of state agencies and programs. During that time, she spent several years as the in-charge auditor for the Municipal Audit Program and has been managing the program since 2017. Amy is a CPA and licensed municipal auditor.

Amy has participated in the OSCPA since 2005 when she joined the Governmental Accounting and Auditing Committee and served as Committee Chair in 2012. She also served on the OSCPA Board of Directors from 2013 through 2020, serving as Chair in 2019. 

When not pouring over governmental audit reports, Amy likes to travel, spend time with her husband and large extended family, climb mountains, and take her dogs hiking.

(12/2/21)

Emily Paul is a supervising project manager with the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB). Emily was part of the project teams that developed accounting and financial reporting standards related to postemployment benefits (including Statements 67, 68, 73,74, 75, 78, and 82) and related implementation guidance. She has also led projects related to capitalization of interest cost (Statement 89), Section 457 deferred compensation plans (Statement 97), and accounting changes and error corrections (Statement 100). Her current project assignments include annual implementation guidance updates, subsequent events research, and the post-implementation review of Statement 87 related to leases. Before joining the GASB staff in 2013, Emily was a senior associate in Ernst & Young's Financial Accounting Advisory Services practice in New York City. Emily received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and Master in Professional Accounting degree from The University of Texas at Austin.

Troy Rector is a principal in the Not-for-Profit and Governmental Services Group at Clark Nuber and has spent his career serving Not-For-Profit and Governmental organizations. He serves community-based organizations including those receiving governmental grant assistance. Troy regularly advises and presents on Uniform Guidance related topics. He is the chair of the WSCPA's Governmental Audit & Accounting Committee and is a member of the AICPA's Government Audit Quality Center's Executive Committee.

(1/31/20)

A mainstay in the Oregon municipal finance arena, Carol Samuels has assisted Oregon education and local governments on financings of every type and description, traditional and non-traditional alike, for more than thirty years.

In recent years, Carol has become an acknowledged expert on PERS. She offers workshops and training to municipal officials on the dynamics of PERS, provides advice on actuarial valuations, and has assisted with consideration of legislative initiatives and administrative actions. She has organized an employer network and has also worked with PERS to establish a standing Employer Advisory Group.

Carol is frequently called upon to serve on commissions and boards. Among other such activities, she currently chairs the OGFOA Emerging Issues Committee and is an active member of the Education Committee. She is also a member of LOC's Finance and Tax Committee. She is a frequent presenter for, and former board member of, both OGFOA and OASBO, and was presented with the OGFOA (OMFOA) Honorary Life Membership award in 2016 and the Outstanding Contribution to Public Finance award in 2002. She is also a former Commissioner on the Multnomah County Tax Supervising and Conservation Commission. During the 1997 Legislative Session, Carol served as the tax and finance lobbyist for the League of Oregon Cities, during which time she represented cities in the drafting of Measure 50. As such, she has a strong understanding of the property tax system and other financing options for local governments.

Prior to joining Piper, Carol worked in the Public Finance Departments of U.S. Bank in Portland, and Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette in New York. She also worked as a financial analyst for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City, and as a lobbyist for the Governor of New Jersey in Washington D.C. She received her MBA degree from the Yale School of Organization and Management and her BA from Tufts University. She holds Series 7 and Series 52 securities licenses.

(1/29/20)

Debbie has more than 25 years of local government accounting, budgeting and auditing experience. She has worked in the finance department of two cities, audited multiple cities, counties and special districts, and has worked for a software company that developed fund accounting software for local governments across the country. As a contractor she has prepared financial statements for a variety of local governments. She is a licensed CPA and a Licensed Municipal Auditor in Oregon

Kay Sohl has provided training and consultation for Executive Directors, CFOs, and Boards of Directors of over 7,000 nonprofit organizations throughout the United States. Kay focuses her work on rethinking nonprofit strategies for financial sustainability, Board financial oversight, compliance with federal funds management requirements, and the challenges of nonprofit accounting and financial reporting. She is a frequent presenter for state and regional coalitions of nonprofit human service providers.

Kay has authored multiple financial management toolkits for nonprofits, including resources for cost allocation, financial reporting, dashboard development, and the Uniform Guidance.

Kay founded and lead TACS (Technical Assistance for Community Services) now known as the Nonprofit Association of Oregon, the northwest's largest and most comprehensive capacity building resource for community based nonprofit organizations. She is co-author of the Oregon Nonprofit Corporation Handbook, an 800-page guide to legal, financial, and governance requirements and strategies for nonprofit organizations. Now in its 5th edition, the Handbook has sold over 11,000 copies and is a must-have resource for founders, board members, managers, and funders of nonprofit organizations.

(11/23/20)

Nancy Young-Oliver is the Director of Budget & Grants at TriMet in Portland Oregon. She was previously with Moss Adams LLP from 2006 through 2015 and prior to that she was with the Oregon Secretary of State Audits Division for ten years. Nancy has conducted fraud investigations for over 20 years and her experience includes conducting investigations in various industry groups including state, local and tribal governments, not-for-profits; auto dealerships; financial institutions; health care; manufacturing and distribution; colleges and universities; and construction companies. Nancy is also an adjunct professor at Portland State University teaching Forensic and Investigative Accounting. In 2013, Nancy was awarded an Achievement Medal from the City of Portland Police Bureau for the Justice for Fraud Victim's Program (fighting white-collar crime from the classroom). Nancy was published in the June 2014 Journal of Accountancy and has co-authored a guide on fraud in the dealership industry that was released in 2010.

(12/31/19)