Government-Wide Statements

#4. Government-Wide Statements (Professor)

Why is it important for the Component Units to be included in the CAFR for government entities? Class, please respond as well.

#5.Interfund Transfers (Professor)

Class, why is it important for GASB to put guidelines in place for interfund transfers? Who benefits from these guidelines?#6. Line Item budgeting (Student Post)

Line item budgeting is the most common type of budgeting and the most simple. A common approach to budgeting line-items is called incremental budgeting. In essence, an incremental budget is derived from the current year’s budget by adding or subtracting amounts expected to be required by line items. (Reck 483).   Reck, Jacqueline, Suzanne Lowensohn, Earl Wilson. Accounting for Governmental & Nonprofit Entities, 17th Edition. McGraw-Hill Learning Solutions, 02/2015. VitalBook file#7. Popular Reporting (Student Post)

One subject that I came across in the text is popular reporting. Popular reports were created by the governments so that they can communicate financial results to citizens. These are also referred to as citizen-centric reports. The reports include condensed financial information, narrative descriptions, and budget summaries. The chapter states, “For popular reports to be effective, researchers have found that they need to make the information relevant to the citizen.” The popular reports were also created in hopes of intending to supplement the CAFR but not replace it. Behind every popular report, should be held of great value, attract readers, establish credibility, and should be posted to the government website.

References:

Reck, J., Lowensohn, S., & Wilson, E. (2016). ACCOUNTING FOR GOVERNMENTAL & NONPROFIT ENTITIES (17th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database..

#8. OCBOA (Student Post)

Another topic that is covered in the chapter 9 text is Other Comprehensive Basis of Accounting, also known OCBOA. The OCBOA is the term used for a comprehensive basis of accounting other than the general accepted accounting principals or GAAP.  The OCBOA that  is most commonly used by the local and state government are cash or modified cash basis and regulatory basis of accounting. According to Schneider Downs, “There are certain limitations with OCBOA statements. Certain users of the financial statements may not accept OCBOA statements since the financial position and results of operation can be impacted, for example, by delaying payments or receipts or the fact that fair value adjustments generally are not applicable.”

References: