The quest for users needs in public sector reporting / guest editor, Ellen Haustein [and three others].

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Haustein, Ellen, editor.

Series:

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management ; Volume 31, Number 4

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Finance, Public.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (124 pages).

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : Emerald Publishing, 2019.

Summary:

Public Financial Management (PFM) encompasses a comprehensive set of diverse activities regarding budget preparation and execution, control, accounting, reporting, monitoring and evaluation. These activities produce plenty of data for a relatively broad range of users with diverse needs. Despite an upsurge of interest in PFM research, a common critique refers to the absence of a theoretical background that serves in framing accounting and reporting principles and financial management activities in the public sector accounting has been based on "hypothesised users and hypothesised needs". Doubts have been raised, whether a 'substantial number of users' even exists. This brings the idea of General Purpose Financial Statements ad absurdum.The requirement to define users and their needs leaves both researchers and standard setters with numerous challenges regarding the identification of users, the classification of their needs and the resolution of user needs' conflicts. Despite existing analytical contributions on users and their needs and the approaches contained in the conceptual frameworks issued by standard setting boards (GASB, 1987; IPSASB, 2014), there is a strong demand further research on these issues, especially in the public sector context. The link between the users and their needs would directly lead to the accounting model required (Jones, 1992), including a specific reporting format. Another issue concerns the usefulness of information provided by PFM. A controversial debate is prevalent upon two types of uses, i.e. objectives of accounting on one side, accountability and decision usefulness on the other side which is currently gaining momentum in the potential European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS) development. A growing literature is discussing accounting objectives and the debate is still ongoing.This ebook aims to provide further insights into the puzzle of different user groups and their needs, and use PFM information. Seven articles have been selected: one literature review on the theme, a theory development article and five articles that provide empirical data from different national settings (Czech Republic, Finland, Malta, Portugal, and USA) about the use of accounting information, primarily focussed on politicians.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-83982-305-4