It has been an honor to serve as president of the National Association of State Comptrollers over the past year and a privilege to collaborate with other State Comptrollers from around the nation on issues important to each of our states.

I look forward to visiting with you at the NASC conference in Oklahoma City on March 16-18. The Skirvin Plaza is the conference hotel and is located near downtown and the Bricktown entertainment and restaurant district.  And if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll hear the Skirvin ghost!

Don’t forget that NASACT’s Executive Committee is again offering travel assistance for this conference. NASC members or their designees are eligible to receive up to $750 in travel assistance to attend.

The Program Committee has worked hard to put together sessions, roundtables and networking opportunities that address issues identified by state comptrollers. Sessions will include:
 

• Sessions on pandemic oversight, reporting, and lessons learned.
• Updates from the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.
• ERP trends, emerging methodologies and digital and finance transformation.
• Recovering overhead costs from federal programs.
• The role of Comptroller as strategic advisor.
• Cybersecurity, the infrastructure bill, and risk in the cloud era.
• Today’s labor force.
• Roundtables on federal/state issues, operational effectiveness, and best practices.

In addition to many informative sessions, there will be a banquet on Wednesday evening and a tour of the State Capitol on Thursday evening and plenty of other opportunities to network.

I look forward to meeting several new members who will be attending the conference: Gerlda Hines from Georgia and Joanne Thomas from Wisconsin. I hope you will join me in welcoming them to our ranks. And although these names are not new, we also have several members who will be attending their first in-person NASC conference: Ashley Ruiz (AZ), Bill McNamara (MA), Heather Boyd (MI), Dorothy Pascale (RI), Janica Gines (UT) and Jenifer O’Neal (USVI).

It is especially gratifying to be working with a remarkable Executive Committee with energy and passion for advancing government accountability, transparency, and innovation. Thank you for your support and all your work over the past year. Serving on the Executive Committee this year are:
 

• Vice President: Doug Cotnoir (ME)
• Secretary/Treasurer: Cheryl Grey (MT)
• Immediate Past President: Brandon Woolf (ID)
• Bob Jaros (CO)
• Rob Hamilton (OR)
• Mike Corricelli (TN)
• Kathleen Baxter (AL)

NASC is also very fortunate to have so many of you leading and participating in committees and information sharing groups. Participation in these committees helps build our professional network and the collective knowledge we need to stay abreast of emerging issues. These committees and information sharing groups thrive because of your participation. Thanks to all of you who contribute in big and small ways to these meaningful discussions.  And a special thanks to the chairs, co-chairs, and group leaders for their dedicated service.
 
We are all faced with constant change, whether from GASB statements, legislation, world events, or technology, and involvement in NASACT has been invaluable through every change I’ve faced in the past ten years as state comptroller. I am so thankful for NASACT and for the comptrollers in other states that have been there to offer advice, experience, and lessons learned. I encourage you to get involved if you are not already. You will not regret it!

I hope to see you all in Oklahoma City at the 2022 NASC conference.

 

Lynne Bajema has served as Oklahoma's state comptroller since April 2012. Before her appointment, she served as chief financial officer and deputy director of the Oklahoma State and Education Employees Group Insurance Board after working in public accounting and the area of taxation. Ms. Bajema graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma and has been a certified public accountant since 1992. She is president of the National Association of State Comptrollers.