Daxon report shows state needs better accounting practices
Improved accounting practices and financial reporting can help improve the quality of government services and decrease the costs of government in the long term, according to a new report released by the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA).
In the report, “Enhanced Financial Reporting for State Government: Comparing Cost to Performance,” author Tom Daxon explores the relationship between government and its accounting and financial reporting standards.
“Poor financial reporting and accounting practices at all levels of government have failed to provide citizens with the information we need to address the problems we face,” said Daxon, a former Oklahoma Auditor and Inspector and Secretary of Finance and Revenue for former Gov. Frank Keating. “Better accounting and financial reporting practices by our government can play a significant role in identifying and quantifying our problems and developing cost-effective solutions.”
Daxon also studied whether poor accounting practices have contributed to ineffective or costly government services.
“Improved accounting and financial reporting would be a valuable tool government could use to evaluate the potential effectiveness of all services and programs. In Oklahoma, lawmakers are facing falling revenues and budgetary cuts. Improved reporting standards would be a helpful tool in evaluating which programs may be wasteful or ineffective,” Daxon said. “It can also help spotlight programs that are working.”
In the report, Daxon says better accounting practices would allow citizens to make better use of current transparency initiatives.
“Improved accounting and financial reporting practices also can make current transparency initiatives more potent. The information found on transparency websites will become more useful and relevant for the citizens seeking to hold government accountable for its performance,” Daxon said.
OCPA Executive Director Forrest Claunch applauded the report from Daxon and said its release is the latest example of OCPA’s commitment to improving government transparency.
“OCPA is committed to advancing government transparency and this latest report from Tom shows the importance of improving accounting and financial reporting standards so citizens can decide whether their tax dollars are being used properly and effectively,” Claunch said.
To read the entire 30-page report, visit the OCPA Web site at www.ocpathink.org.
Researchers get tobacco grants
Four researchers who study tobacco use and the risk of tobacco-related disease in Oklahoma are the recipients of the 2009 Seed Grants from the Oklahoma Tobacco Research Center, a program of the OU Cancer Institute.
The grants, which total more than $200,000, help researchers initiate very promising projects that have yet to receive major federal funding from organizations such as the National Institutes of Health.
All projects at the Oklahoma Tobacco Research Center (OTRC) focus on tobacco use and its effect on health, which is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. These funded pilot projects represent extraordinary research opportunities to better understand gene-environment interactions, priorities in health communication, and disparities in tobacco-related disease burden.
“Tobacco use and the many diseases that result from chronic smoking are a significant problem in Oklahoma,” said Laura Beebe, Ph.D., director of the Oklahoma Tobacco Research Center. “By supporting research that helps us better understand the problem, we can find a way to help our residents who are struggling to quit and those who are already struggling with the effects.”
The research projects chosen for 2009 through a competitive peer review process are:
Initiation of Smoking in African American Young Adults – Principal investigator, Marshall Cheney, M.A., program administrator for community resources development at the Oklahoma City-County Health Department. This research will advance scientific knowledge by providing formative research on understanding why African Americans begin cigarette smoking at a later age, thus providing a foundation for intervention planning.
Tobacco Use during Pregnancy as a Determinant of Gestational Diabetes – Principal investigator, Jennifer Peck, Ph.D., assistant professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the OU College of Public Health, OU Health Sciences Center. This study will investigate gestational diabetes mellitus as a potential tobacco-related health problem, which has significant consequences for the life-long health of women and children.
An Investigation of Strategies to Reduce Smoking Among College Students, Targeting Both College Smokers and Nonsmokers – Principal investigator, Norman C. H. Wong, Ph.D., department of communication, The University of Oklahoma, Norman. This study will compare the effectiveness of two different antismoking message themes – smoking addiction and secondhand smoke – on reducing smoking among college students either by the smoker quitting or nonsmoker urging their close friends who smoke to quit.
The overall objective of this pilot study is to determine whether and how cigarette smoking modulates the association between gene polymorphisms and preclinical atherosclerosis in American Indians.
The Oklahoma Tobacco Research Center (OTRC) was established in 2007 within the OU Cancer Institute to reduce the burden of tobacco-related health problems in Oklahoma. The center is funded through 2012 by the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) with the purpose of extending the impact of the trust’s tobacco control initiatives and leveraging investments to bring additional funding to Oklahoma from the National Cancer Institute, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other sources.
For more information, go online to www.ouhsc.edu/otrc.
Emergency grant is given to TPS
Tulsa Public Schools will be able to improve and strengthen their emergency management plans as a result of a $486,474 grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Education.
The Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools discretionary grant program will enable TPS to improve emergency management.
“The whole purpose is the safety of our students and reassuring parents that a plan is in place if something were to happen,” said Rochelle Klein, the district’s grant writer. Klein authored the proposal for the grant.
In addition to addressing emergency management, plans must commit school districts to coordinate with officials in law enforcement, local government, public safety, public health and mental health; train school officials in emergency management; and provide a method for communicating emergency and reunification procedures to parents and guardians.
Funds may be used to coordinate with local emergency responders, including fire, police and public health agencies; conduct drills and exercises; purchase emergency supplies and equipment; and to train staff and students on emergency response procedures.
Union is upset over plant closing
PRNewswire/ — The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) will request Wisconsin Governor James Doyle take an active part in any negotiations with Mercury Marine that could result in the closing the Fond du Lac facility.
Mercury Marine announced last week they are considering shifting operations from Fond du Lac, Wis., to Stillwater,, a move that would eliminate as many as 2,000 local jobs and devastate the surrounding economy.
“The State of Wisconsin cannot afford to stand by while a major corporation commits an act of economic extortion in its own backyard,” said IAM Business Representative Russell Krings.
“Mercury Marine has benefited for decades from state and local tax incentives and public support.
“They cannot be allowed to use the current economic crisis to pit one small community against another for the privilege of their presence.”
IAM members in Fond du Lac recently ratified a four-year agreement with Mercury Marine that included a provision permitting the contract to be modified in the event of extreme circumstances.
Proposals received from Mercury Marine this week would essentially eliminate nearly all economic and non-economic language in the collective bargaining agreement, except the provisions pertaining to management rights.
“We’re prepared to meet with Mercury Marine, as we have for years, and discuss the best way to preserve jobs, promote this company’s products and protect the economic interest of this community,” said Krings.
“We are not willing to allow short-sighted managers and out-of-town opportunists to tear down what we have worked for years to create.”
Air show at TASM is August 7-8
The Tulsa Air and Space Museum (TASM) will honor the armed forces in Oklahoma with a military fly-in on August 7 and August 8 during “Oklahoma Defender Days.” The public will be able to see the jets as they fly in, land and park at TASM. The Air Force, Navy and Army pilots will be on hand to meet the public and inspire a new generation of Oklahoma Defenders. Festivities include:
• Military airplanes and helicopters include an A-10 Warthog, E-2 Hawkeye, F-5 Tiger, T-38 Talon, T-45 Goshawk, T-44, T-1, T-6 Texan II, E-6 TACAMO, C-130 Hercules, H-60 Blackhawk, H-34 Choctaw, Police Helicopters, and more.
• Military pilots on hand to inspire a new generation of Oklahoma Defenders.
• Shows on TASM’s 50-foot dome theater
• Inflatable Army obstacle course
• 3- story rock wall for climbing
• 75-foot inflatable Space Shuttle jumper for kids
• Many military vehicles, both historic and modern
• The Science Matters Mobile Museum - a big truck with fun science experiments funded by the Reynolds Foundation
• Air Force F-22 riding vehicle for kids
Here are the Oklahoma units and people who will participate:
• Primary, intermediate, and advanced flight training for the United States Air Force is conducted at Vance Air Force Base in Enid. Instructor pilots and student pilots from Vance AFB will fly a T-1, T-38, and T-6 Texan II to TASM.
• The Navy’s E-6 TACAMO (Take Charge and Move Out) collects intelligence, conducts surveillance, and deters nuclear aggression. An E-6 crew will be arriving from Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City.
• Navy pilots from Oklahoma that fly advanced jet trainers and instruct the fighter pilots of tomorrow will fly in from Kingsville, Texas.
• Navy pilots from Oklahoma that conduct Airborne Battlefield Command and Control in the E-2 Hawkeye will fly in from New Orleans.
• Navy instructor pilots from Oklahoma will fly-in from Corpus Christie, Texas, in a T-44.
• An H-34 Choctaw, one of the largest helicopters from Vietnam, will fly in from Inola.
• An A-10 Warthog will fly-in from Fort Smith, Ark.
• A C-130 Hercules will fly-in from Little Rock.
• Helicopters and pilots from the Tulsa Police Department keep us safe from criminal activity. They will be on hand to meet the public.
• Aircraft and festivities are subject to change without notice.