U.S. Coast Guard Finance Center

FINCEN HISTORY

Our Past - How We Came About:
For a number of years, the Coast Guard’s accounting "System" consisted of many offices throughout the United States, all operating under common guidelines but using various methods, procedures, and interpretations to conduct daily business. Information gathering was frequently difficult, and military personnel often had to be retrained upon reassignment. Before "streamlining" became a fashionable term, the Coast Guard, with a vision for the future, decided to consolidate and standardize its financial management and accounting operations. After a national search, the decision was made to consolidate the operations of over 20 accounting offices in Chesapeake, Virginia. This vision materialized on August 4, 1989, when the Coast Guard’s only Finance Center (FINCEN) was officially commissioned. Subsequent successful operations, many of which employ innovative and leading edge processes, have confirmed the wisdom of that decision.

FINCEN Location:
The Finance Center presently occupies almost 65,000 square feet of space in a GSA-leased facility in the Greenbrier section of Chesapeake, Virginia.

FINCEN'S role in in the US Coast Guard:
The establishment of the Finance Center has resulted in, among other things, the consistent application of U.S. Treasury rules and regulations to all accounting transactions, the consolidation of CG- now use to maintain wide financial information in one data base, and the introduction of new and improved standards for document processing. The method that Coast Guard unitstheir procurement files/logs and accounting status reports has likewise been improved.

FINCEN'S Future:
As government at all levels attempts to be responsive to national and local needs, the U.S. Coast Guard will continue to perform its multi-mission tasks worldwide. As stewards of the taxpayers, support activities such as the Finance Center must continue to improve and enhance the quality of services delivered to our customers. The electronic exchange of information (EDI), service-wide use of the VISA purchase card and other innovations will, when fully implemented, further improve the way the Coast Guard operates into the next century. The Finance Center is indeed poised to move "Into the Future".