Consolidated financial statements in the public sector

2014 ◽  
pp. 63-76
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Grossi
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
The Public

The Reporting Entity in Private-Public Accounting Harmonisation. Is Control Enough for the Local Government Consolidated Financial Statements?

2017 ◽  
pp. 5-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristian Carini ◽  
Laura Rocca ◽  
Claudio Teodori ◽  
Monica Veneziani
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
The Public ◽  
Financial Accountability ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Reporting Entity

The European Commission initiated a discussion on the expediency of using the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), based on the IAS/IFRS, as a common base for harmonizing the public sector accounting systems of the member states. However, literature suggests that accounting is not neutral with respect to the economic, social and political dimensions. In the perspective of evolution of the accounting regulation outlined, balanced between accountability, with the need to represent phenomena for reporting pur-poses, and decisionmaking issues, which concentrates on the quantitative importance of the values, the paper aims to analyse the effects of the application of different criteria for the definition of the reporting entity of the local government consolidated financial statements (CFS). The Italian PCA 4/4, the test of control and the financial accountability approaches are examined. The evidence that emerged from the case studies examined identifies several criticalities in the Italian PCA 4/4 and support the thesis that the financial accountability approach is more effective in providing a complete representation of the public resources entrusted to and managed by the group, whereas the control approach better approximates quantification of the group results in terms of central government surveillance. The analysis highlights the importance of the post implementation review period and the opportunity to contextualize the adoption of the consolidated financial statement in the broader spectrum of the accounting harmonization process, participating in the process of definition of the European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS).

Reporting Entity in the Consolidated Financial Statements

2020 ◽  
pp. 65-96
Author(s):  
Cristian Carini ◽  
Claudio Teodori
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Working Group ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
Financial Report ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Expert Working Group ◽  
Reporting Entity

Eurostat and EPSAS Expert Working Group are engaged to outline the suitability of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in the process of the public sector accounting harmonisation. Part of the process is referred to the scope of the consolidated financial statements and the possible criteria to identify the public sector group's reporting entity, that is the boundaries of the group. This last point is of relevance as recalled by the recent EPSAS Conceptual Framework Reflection Paper, under which public sector reporting entities should provide financial report based on decision-making and accountability considerations. The chapter aims to contribute to the debate on consolidated financial statements both from the theoretical and empirical points of view.

scholarly journals Determinants of the Implementation of the Public-Sector Consolidated Financial Statements in Vietnam

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 903-913
Author(s):  
Yen Thi Tran ◽  
Thanh Thi Cam Tran ◽  
Trang Cam Hoang
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Human Resources ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Regulatory Environment ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public

The purpose of this study is to identify factors that affect the implementation of the consolidated financial statements (CFS) of the public sector in Vietnam. The study also presented some of the benefits and challenges of implementing CFS in the view of some experts in Vietnam. The majority view of experts thought that the implementation of CFS in the public sector has many benefits, including a financial clarification of the public sector. Nevertheless, Vietnam will face difficulties when implementing CFS such as human resources, infrastructure, and financial resources. The results of the quantitative analysis showed that accrual accounting basis, accounting staff capacity, regulatory environment, and information technology significantly influenced the implementation of CFS of the public sector in Vietnam. The study contributes significantly to theory and practice as Vietnamese policy makers recently issued Decree No. 25/2017/ND-CP on CFS for the public sector. This Decree takes effect from January 1, 2018.

Developments and challenges in public sector accounting

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Félix Madrid García
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Role Model ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
The Public ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Management Indicators ◽  
Fixed Assets ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Accounting Convergence

What could be dubbed traditional public sector accounting was adequate for the public sector as it existed up to the late 1980s. When it became evident that this type of accounting no longer sufficed, attention turned to seeking a role model in business accounting that differed significantly from public sector accounting. Despite the move of public sector accounting towards business accounting practices, some issues still remain unresolved. The accounting treatment of fixed assets is the question which has perhaps generated the most literature. Today much ground has been covered; however, to be modern and effective, public sector accounting has still to grapple with three important challenges: standardisation and accounting convergence; consolidation of financial statements; and management indicators and additional information for disclosure.

scholarly journals From Accountability to Readability in the Public Sector: Evidence from Italian Universities

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Alessandra Allini ◽  
Luca Ferri ◽  
Marco Maffei ◽  
Annamaria Zampella
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Accrual Accounting ◽  
Accounting Systems ◽  
Balance Sheets ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Italian Government ◽  
Final Sample

This paper aims to explore the readability of the disclosure provided by Italian universities that changed their accounting systems to accrual accounting over the past three years. The transition from cash to accrual accounting not only concerns financial statements, but also the related notes. Indeed, the Italian government has paid great attention to the narrative sections of reports due to their capacity to provide more transparency. To provide better accountability, financial statements must be readable for all stakeholders. We used two different indexes, namely the Gunning fog and GULPEase indexes. The analysis was conducted on a sample of universities to analyze the narrative sections of the first financial statements prepared according to the new accounting system in 2012–2014. The final sample comprised 32 Italian universities. The research results demonstrated low readability in the balance sheets of Italian universities after switching to accrual accounting, illustrating an unsatisfactory level of accountability.

Consolidated financial statements – a new challenge for the public sector administration

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreea Cîrstea ◽  
Cristina Silvia Nistor ◽  
Adriana Tiron Tudor
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Statistical Methods ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Financial Reporting Standards ◽  
The Public Sphere

Purpose Considering the worldwide importance granted to this topic, the purpose of this paper is to analyze, through a detailed pyramidal analysis, the intention of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) to respond better to the public sector characteristics. Design/methodology/approach The research methodology combines content analysis with the comparative and interpretive method, and also some statistical methods such as residual analysis, association coefficients, that come to bring added value to the public sector literature. Findings The main findings of the research concern the appreciation of consolidation approach in the public sphere under a dual aspect. The first one is theoretical, by presenting the evolution of the concept in literature, and the second one is empirical, by analyzing how IPSAS correlates with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), how the Exposure Draft 49 (ED 49) respondents perceive its content and implications, along with the extent to which the publication of IPSAS 35 took into account the exposure draft stage. In the authors’ opinion, the study manages to capture, theoretically and empirically, the evolution and the stage of consolidation in the public sector. The main results of the study lie in the combination in the empirical sphere of the content analysis with the mathematical and statistical methods, in order to assess the correlation IPSAS/IFRS, the responses to ED 49, but also the influences on the final version of IPSAS 35. Research limitations/implications The main limitations of the study are: the diversity of the received responses to ED and the number of comment letters submitted by the respondents. Practical implications The study addresses to a broad range of users: theoreticians, practitioners or professional bodies/legislators who will have a basis for analyzing what the acceptance and inclusion of IPSAS 35 in the national accounting rules would mean. Social implications The paper offers the possibility to understand the evolution of the concept of public sector consolidation. Originality/value The first originality aspect is revealed by the theoretical documentation and the second one lies in the combination of the empirical sphere of the content analysis with the mathematical and statistical methods.

scholarly journals Transformation process of state accounting to accrual basis accounting in conditions of the Czech Republic

2013 ◽  
Vol 61 (7) ◽  
pp. 2593-2602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milana Otrusinová ◽  
Eliška Pastuszková
Keyword(s):  
Public Finance ◽  
Czech Republic ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Transformation Process ◽  
Paper Briefly ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
The Public ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Municipal Level

This paper briefly outlines the significant issues that occur during the implementation of the accrual principle accounting in the public sector in the context of the reform of accounting of public finance in the Czech Republic. The reform mostly regards government organizational units, self-governing territorial units and allowance organizations. The objective of the paper is to describe the transformation process from state accounting to accrual principle accounting in the Czech Republic and to identify the main problems associated with the introduction of accrual principle. Authors summarize these key problems with the use of questionnaire survey results at the municipal level in the Czech Republic. According to the research presented in this paper, the ongoing reform has not provided the intended transparency of accounting in selected entities and these tend to have an impression of their efforts being wasted by doing unnecessary work. Drawing on the above facts, approaches to the public finance accounting reform by central authorities and municipalities are different. However, we can say that the reform was launched to improve the situation of users of financial statements and had been needed for many years because public sector accounting regulations were incomplete and non-uniform.

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