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GFOA of BC

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GFOA of BC

Government Finance Officers Association of British Columbia is a not-for-profit organization that represents local government finance officers in BC.

08/14/2026

700+ participants. 20 Boot Camps. One strong community. 🎉

Today, we wrapped up the 20th offering of GFOABC’s Finance Officers Development Program, our flagship residential program for local government finance professionals.

Since the first Boot Camp in 2007, more than 700 participants have attended.

Twenty offerings later, the heart of the program remains member-to-member learning, sharing experiences, building connections, and strengthening local government finance across BC.

Congratulations, Boot Camp 2026! 🎓

Congratulations to Team Red, winners of this year’s Golden Boot. 🎉

Boot Camp returns to UVic next August. Watch for registration in the new year.

08/13/2026

Twenty years of Boot Camp! 🎉

This week, GFOABC is celebrating the 20th offering of our Finance Officers Development Program, better known as Boot Camp.

And this year’s cohort is a strong reminder of why the program continues to matter: 60% of participants have been in local government for three years or less, while 90% already have more than three years of finance experience.

They aren’t learning finance. They’re learning local government finance, including the system, responsibilities, relationships, and how all the pieces fit together.

For 20 years, GFOABC has had the privilege of stewarding and evolving Boot Camp alongside an incredible community of faculty, sector partners, and finance professionals.

Here’s to 20 years—and to the next generation of leaders in local government finance. 🎓

08/11/2026

Boot Camp Day 1 begins with the question that brought everyone into the room: what does a local government financial officer do?

Local government finance professionals from across the province arrived at UVic this weekend for five days of collaboration. Today focused on the role itself: what the Community Charter and Local Government Act require of a financial officer, where the legal authority to act comes from, and how the leadership side of the job fits alongside the statutory side.

Then they got to work on it. Boot Camp is built around team case work, and the toolkit is designed to be used in the same way.

Four more days, with plenty still to cover: property taxation, sources and uses of funds, budgeting and financial planning, and financial accounting and reporting.

07/31/2026

Every day, local government finance professionals operate at the political-administrative interface, balancing competing priorities, public expectations, and legislative responsibilities while exercising sound judgment, financial stewardship, and objective decision-making.

Ethics in Local Government Finance is designed to help finance professionals navigate these challenges with confidence. Designed as an interactive learning experience, each session will feature practical case studies, participant polling, facilitated breakout discussions, and live Q&A, providing opportunities to explore real-world scenarios and learn from peers and industry experts.

Session 1: Principles and decision-making — September 10
Session 2: Ethics in practice — October 15

3 CPD hours across the series.
Register 👉 https://www.gfoabc.ca/events/event-details/?EventID=2400

07/10/2026

Much of the work in local government finance happens out of public view. Behind every clean audit, every accessible budget document, and every tax sale handled with care, there are people whose judgment makes it possible.

This year's Excellence in Local Government Finance Awards, presented in Kelowna, recognize five of them:

Tanya Garost — Life Member

Nyla Attiana — Outstanding Contribution

The Tax Sale and Vulnerable People Working Group — Outstanding Achievement

Village of Zeballos — Innovative Idea

Justin Brogan — New Member

Each was nominated by peers. Congratulations to all five — and thank you for the standard you set for the profession.

👉 Read the full citations: https://www.gfoabc.ca/about-us/awards/2026-award-recipients/

07/07/2026

How are BC local governments managing the financial demands of housing growth? When we asked, nearly half told us they don't yet have a full-lifecycle financial model for it.

That finding is one thread in the Conference Edition of Dollars & Sense Perspective, now out. This issue looks back at the 2026 Annual Conference in Kelowna and digs into the questions that defined it: two Board-led case studies on housing and infrastructure, the Quarterly Question results on housing growth, and a keynote on gratitude at work.

It's the fullest issue of the year, and every piece traces back to a conversation members were already having.

👉 Read the Conference Edition: https://www.gfoabc.ca/whats-new/newsletters/gfoabc-newsletter-june-2026-issue-135/

06/12/2026

Fresh from our Kelowna Conference, GFOABC is pleased to introduce the 2026–2027 Board of Directors.

President — Corinne Bomben, City of Prince Rupert
Vice President — Jeffrey Lovell, City of Port Coquitlam
Treasurer — Charlotte Osborne, City of Cranbrook
Secretary — David Hallinan, City of Kamloops
Past President — Nyla Attiana, District of Tofino

Directors at Large: Carla Fox (Thompson-Nicola Regional District), Nicole Gervais (Municipal Finance Authority of BC), Patrick Gramiak (City of Salmon Arm), Farhad Hossain (Regional District of Kootenay Boundary), Elio Iorio (District of North Vancouver), and Lenora Lee (KPMG).

Not pictured: Lenora Lee, and Jeffrey Lovell.

Join us in congratulating the new Board in the comments. 💬

05/29/2026

Thursday in Kelowna was about momentum. We opened with the President's welcome and our annual Awards, taking a moment to recognize the local government finance professionals whose work holds BC communities together.

Then keynote speaker Steve Foran took the stage with Gratitude at Work: Building Resilience Together — a reminder that resilience isn't built only in budgets and asset plans, but in the teams and relationships behind them. Equal parts energizing and practical.

From there, delegates moved through concurrent sessions addressing the real pressures finance teams face right now: risk-based budgeting, delivering capital projects, and shifting from reactive recovery to proactive resilience.

But the part you can't fit on a schedule? The hallway conversations. The questions at the mic. Reconnecting with peers from across the province who understand exactly what your week looks like.

We closed the day among the vineyards at 50th Parallel Estate Winery for our Gala Evening — good food, great company, and a well-earned toast to the work ahead.

One more day to go. 👏

📸 Moments from Day 2.

05/28/2026

As Day 2 of the 2026 GFOA of BC Annual Conference gets underway in Kelowna, a quick look back at a full Day 1, both in person and online.

The day got to the heart of this year's theme, Building Resilient Communities, by examining the housing and infrastructure pressures facing BC local governments and the tools to plan for what's ahead — including a look at how digital twins could reshape capital planning.

Add strong panels, candid Q&A from the floor, and a busy tradeshow floor, and it was a full day of peer learning that defines this community.

Great to see so many of you working through the tough questions together, and there's more ahead today.

05/27/2026

We're underway! 🎉 Day 1 of the 2026 GFOA of BC Annual Conference has arrived in beautiful Kelowna.

We kicked things off last night on the waterfront at King Taps — pre-conference workshops wrapped up, old colleagues reconnected, and many new faces joined the BC local government finance community for the first time.

Those connections aren't just a nice evening out. They're the working relationships that make the year easier — the people you call when a reserves question, a tax sale, or a major infrastructure decision lands on your desk.

Now, the main program begins, centered on this year's theme: Building Resilient Communities: Housing & Infrastructure.

Follow along over the next few days. Welcome, everyone — let's make it a great one.

Address

612 View Street # 408
Victoria, BC
V8W1J5

Opening Hours

Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+12503826871

Website

http://www.gfoabc.ca/

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