The Uncertain Future Of Accountability Reporting

Abstract

If governments do not report accomplishments relative to costs, citizens will be uninformed. The Governmental Accounting Standards Board is encouraging Service Efforts and Accomplishments reporting but it is being opposed by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) and others. Analysis, reported here, of performance reports submitted to the Association of Government Accountants for peer review indicates participating governments are effectively addressing most, but not all, of the concerns raised by the GFOA. Future research and innovative practice are needed to facilitate better linking of costs to performance and finding practicable ways to independently validate cost and performance claims.