1. Home
  2. GFOA
  3. CPFO Exam Syllabus

GFOA CPFO Exam Topics

GFOA CPFO Exam Overview :

Exam Name: Certified Public Finance Officer
Exam Code: CPFO
Certifications: GFOA Certified Public Finance Officers Certification
Actual Exam Duration: 90 minutes
Expected no. of Questions in Actual Exam: 60
See Expected Questions: GFOA CPFO Expected Questions in Actual Exam

GFOA CPFO Exam Objectives :

Section Objectives
Accounting and Financial Reporting Accounting
  •     Grant Accounting
  •     GASB Standards
  •     Governmental and Business-type activities
  •     Measurement focus and basis of accounting
  •     Cost Accounting    
Auditing
  •     Procurement
  •     Audit Standards
  •     Management and Auditor responsibilities
  •     Single audit   
Financial Reporting
  •     Government-wide financial statements
  •     Fund financial statements
  •     Budgetary reporting
  •     Transmittal and MD&A
  •     Sections of a comprehensive annual financial report
  •     PAFR
  •     Communicating Financial Information    
Interpretations and Analysis of Financial Statements
  •     Assessing near-term financial position
  •     Assessing net position
  •     Assessing economic condition
  •     Fund Balance Classification    
Internal Controls
  •     Comprehensive Framework
  •     Audit Committee
  •     Internal Audit
Compensation and Benefits Salary/Compensation
  •     Variables Used to Determine Compensation
  •     Understanding Taxable/Not Taxable Salary and Benefits
  •     Negotiating    
Personnel Procedures
  •     Developing employee compensation and benefits policies
  •     Communicating Benefits to Employees
  •     Federal Fair Labor Standards    
Payroll
  •     General Cost Allocation
  •     Project and Grant Costing and Allocation
  •     Budget Implications and Payroll    
Pension Plans
  •     Actuarial Reporting
  •     Plan Design
  •     Plan Governance
  •     Pension Investment    
Health Care
  •     Plan Design
  •     COBRA 101    
OPEB
  •     Actuarial Reporting
  •     Prefunding/Trusts    
Deferred Compensation
  •     Plan Design
  •     Governance/Fiduciary Responsibilities
Debt Management Debt Program
Debt Management Policy
  •     Policies and Procedures
  •     Capital Markets
  •     Bond Authorization
  •     Debt Management Policy
Debt Capacity Analysis
  •     Legal Debt Capacity
  •     Debt Affordability
Bond Sale
Financing Instruments and Techniques
  •     GO Bonds
  •     Revenue Bonds
  •     Short-Term Financings
  •     Bank Loans and Direct Placements
  •     Taxable Debt
  •     Method of Sale
  •     Debt Structures
Financing Team/ External Professional Services
  •     Legal Counsel
  •     Municipal Advisor
  •     Underwriter
  •     Trustees
  •     Rating Agencies
  •     Credit Enhancement
  •     Other
Bond Pricing
  •     How Bonds are Priced
  •     Cost of Issuance
    Sale Execution
    
Disclosure Responsibilities
  •     Primary Market Disclosure
  •     Continuing Disclosure
  •     Investor Relations Program
Debt Management
  •     Post-Issuance Policies and Procedures
  •     Use of Proceeds
  •     Federal Tax Compliance
  •     Investing Bond Proceeds
  •     Refunding Opportunities
  •     Debt Service Payments
Planning and Budgeting Overall Governance
  •     What is a budget?
  •     Roles and Responsibilities
  •     Legal Requirements    
Planning
  •     Overall Budget Policies
  •     Strategic Planning
  •     CIP
  •     Long-Term Planning / Forecasting (Long-Term)    
Revenue   
  •     Revenue Diversification
  •     Taxes / Fees
  •     Grants    
Budget Process   
  •     Approaches to Budget Process
  •     Public Engagement
  •     Priority Setting / Goal Definition
  •     Budget Calendar / Structure
  •     How to Cut the Budget?    
Budget Analysis   
  •     Forecasting (Annual Projections)
  •     Fiscal Impact Analysis / Cost Benefit Analysis
  •     Policy Analysis / Economic Analysis    
Budget Techniques   
  •     Basis of Budgeting (GAAP Accounting vs. Non-GAAP Budget)
  •     Funds (Transfers / Allocations)
  •     Cut-Back Budgeting / Budget Reductions
  •     General Fund vs. Enterprise Fund
  •     Capital Budget / Project Budget
  •     Personnel/Salary Budget    
Budget Monitoring   
  •     Variance Analysis
  •     Budget Projections and Analysis
  •     Performance Management    
Communications   
  •     Budget Document
  •     Internal Communications
  •     Understanding of Financial Statements and Accounting
  •     Elected Official / Public Communications and Reporting    
Budget Outcomes   
  •     Measuring Outcomes / Accountability
  •     Equity
  •     Transparency
Treasury and Investement Management Investing
  •     Program, Policies and Procedures
  •     Investment Products
  •     Investment Portfolio Strategies
  •     Risk Management
  •     Benchmarking and Reporting    
Treasury Operations   

Payables (15%)
  •     Policies and Procedures
  •     Types of Payables
  •     Payables Processing
Receivables (15%)
  •     Policies and Procedures
  •     Types of Receivables
  •     Receivables Processing
  •     Reconciliation and Reporting
Banking and Merchant Services (10%)
  •     Banking Services
  •     Merchant Services
  •     Selection Process
Fraud Prevention (10%)
  •     Internal
  •     External
Cash Flow Forecasting (10%)
Procurement Public Procurement Function
  •     Value of Strategic Procurement
  •     Competition
  •     Legal Authority
  •     Ethics
  •     Procurement Structure
  •     Link Between Budget Monitoring and Procurement    
Competitive Procurement
  •     Requisition/Purchase Order
  •     Source Selection
  •     RFP/Bid
  •     Cooperative Procurement    
Contract Management
  •     Contract Negotiation
  •     Performance Management    
Supply Chain Management
  •     Vendor Management
  •     Inventory/Supply Chain    
Spend Analysis/Evaluation
  •     Evaluation Team
  •     Bid Analysis
  •     Fiscal Impact/NPV    
Managed Competition/Outsourcing
  •     Privatization
  •     Public Private Partnership
  •     Service Level Agreements    
Specialized Procurement
  •     Construction
  •     Software
  •     Financial Services    
Procurement Policy
  •     Procurement Policy Manual
  •     Social/Community Procurement
Risk Assessment Enterprise Risk Management
  •     Risk Identification
  •     Risk Assessment
  •     Risk Response
  •     Internal Controls (Fraud Prevention)    
Local Government Law and Compliance
  •     Public Information/Records
  •     Tort Liability    
Workplace/HR
  •     Employment Law    
Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery
  •     Natural Disaster
  •     Disaster Preparedness
  •     Disaster Response    
Insurance
  •     Cyber Insurance
  •     Contractor Issuance
  •     Liability Insurance    
Information Technology
  •     Cyber Security
  •     Data Security
  •     Cloud Services
Official Information http://www.gfoa.org/cpfo

Updates in the GFOA CPFO Exam Topics:

GFOA CPFO exam questions and practice test are the best ways to get fully prepared. Study4exam's trusted preparation material consists of both practice questions and practice test. To pass the actual  Certified Public Finance Officers CPFO  exam on the first attempt, you need to put in hard work on these questions as they cover all updated  GFOA CPFO exam topics included in the official syllabus. Besides studying actual questions, you should take the  GFOA CPFO practice test for self-assessment and actual exam simulation. Revise actual exam questions and remove your mistakes with the Certified Public Finance Officer CPFO exam practice test. Online and Windows-based formats of the CPFO exam practice test are available for self-assessment.