State law requires that counties submit three immigration reports annually each December -- the Public Benefits/SAVE Report, the E-Verify Public Contractor Report and the Business License/Private Employer Report -- in order to stay in compliance with Georgia’s immigration requirements. Both the Department of Audits and Accounts and the Department of Community Affairs opened their online reporting system to receive the 2012 reports on Dec. 1. Failure to submit these reports in a timely manner may result in loss of qualified local government status among other penalties.

Visit http://www.accg.org/content.asp?ContentId=1984 to view the full article online.

 

Communication between ACCG and Georgia counties is critical during the legislative session. As ACCG prepares for the start of the 2013 legislative session, we need to have the county legislative coordinator (CLC) network in place. Each county is asked to designate a CLC who is responsible for monitoring and evaluating legislative updates and alerts from ACCG; presenting a brief legislative report or update to the Board of Commissioners at each commission meeting during the legislative session; coordinating the county's response to requests for information made by ACCG; receiving notification when local legislation is introduced for the county; informing and training commissioners, county officials, and staff on the use of the legislative tracking feature and other resources available at www.accg.org; and maintaining contact information on the local legislative delegation. Please contact ACCG Policy Coordinator Ines Kovacevic at (404) 522-5022 if your county still needs to designate a CLC. Please see the most recent list of 2013 CLC's.

Visit http://www.accg.org/library/2012_11_30_CLC_List_for_publishing.pdf to view the full article online.

 

Local government officials now have the opportunity to take a purchasing course, a new addition to the Carl Vinson Institute of Government's portfolio of government finance courses. CVIOG, in cooperation with the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education, offers this self-paced online finance course as a part of its Financial Management Training Program. Topics in the new purchasing curriculum include alternatives for organizing the purchasing function, step-by-step breakdown of the purchasing process, methods for obtaining competitively priced goods and services, essential documentation to support purchases and purchasing ethics.

Visit http://www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/ppd/govfinance to view the full article online.

 

The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Georgia Farm Bureau, and the Georgia Department of Agriculture will host their annual Georgia Ag Forecast Seminars across the state beginning on Jan. 25, 2013, and ending on Feb. 1, 2013. Each session will feature a UGA faculty member providing a preview of the upcoming year and a regional speaker discussing the hottest topics in Georgia agriculture. In addition, each session is followed by a Q&A segment and a networking lunch for all attendees. Lastly, participants will leave with a preview of the upcoming year and a copy of that year's Ag Forecast Book. Registration for the Ag Forecast is now open.

Visit http://georgiaagforecast.com/registration.html to view the full article online.

 

Come learn about some of the top local government innovations at the 2013 Transforming Local Government Conference (TLG): Cool Communities. The conference will take place April 10-12 in Atlanta and will highlight the means and methods local governments are using to "future-proof" their cities. In addition, TLG will highlight the application and modification of existing practices used by local officials to fit within the ever-changing scheme of local government.

Visit http://tlgconference.org/ to view the full article online.