A Study on the Governmental Financial Reporting Reform in Taiwan: Lessons from GASB No. 34
Date Issued
2008
Date
2008
Author(s)
Tsai, Hsin-Yu
Abstract
Motivation and Purposeovernmental accounting in Taiwan has not changed for decades of years. It was framed under considerations of budgetary compliance rather than users’ needs. Thus, the information presented has been neither user-friendly nor useful for decision making. To improve questions above, Directorate-Generate of Budget, Accounting and Statistics in Taiwan adopted GASB No. 34 as the model of financial reporting reform, an unprecedented one in Taiwan. The following challenges need to be taken cautiously. GASB has accumulated lots of experience since published Statement No. 34 in 1999. Besides, there have been many literatures on this subject. Although learning the financial reporting model of GASB No. 34, we didn’t understand its implementation, problems and relative researches thoroughly. All these will be deeply studied in this thesis.ethodologyaterials were mainly gathered from literatures published in periodicals or by institutions, as well as from information presented in websites of GASB and state and local governments in USA. All these help to understand the implementation of GASB No. 34 in USA, and to facilitate the reform made in Taiwan.esides, through interviewing with officials and professors participating in the reform, opinions and suggestions about it are presented.onclusion and Suggestion hat can be studied from the implementation of GASB No. 34 in USA:.MD&A: Governments should give readers an objective analysis of financial performance. .Statement of Net Assets/ Balance Sheet: The requirements that facilitate infrastructures assets reporting, the preparations made for deprecating infrastructures assets, the allowance of reporting infrastructures assets using the modified approach, and the principles made to capitalize assets as well as to reclassify assets properly..Statement of Activities/Statement of Revenue, Expenditures and Changes in Fund Balance: Governments should prepare for the following in advance:1)How to define general revenues and program revenues.2)How to allocate indirect expenses to related functions or programs.3)How to eliminate internal transactions. 4)Through communications to prevent users from misunderstanding the message of Statement of Activities. .Consider to modify the requirements of MD&A and notes to the financial statement.uggestions for governmental financial reporting reform:.The reform should be supported by the chief executive and departments related..Report capital assets progressively..Requirements should be modified and supports should be given timely..Index or statistical information should be provided to assist readers to assess governments’ financial condition. .Infrastructure assets may be allowed being reported by the modified approach..Deliberate on how to disclose the contingent and other special liabilities..Make the reform more smoothly through adequate education and communication. .Promote the cooperation between government departments and the academia..Enhance the abilities and values accountants in government departments have.
Subjects
governmental accounting
governmental financial report
Statement of Net Assets
Statement of Activities
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