The Philosophy of Public Finance
Mason Gaffney is one of the philosophers in the economic world who has created the philosophy of public finance. One of the principles of this philosophy is that a person does not pay taxes from the land, this is the land gives money for payment. Therefore, Gaffney draws a line between an owner and a land.
Then, Gaffney refers to the ways when taxes should be either reduced or eliminated, these are the cases when money are gained for public purposes, when the owner uses the land to serve others and when he/she has to hire labor. The finances presupposed for taxes should be spend on other issues.
Gaffney is also sure that people who possess land should pay more in comparison with those who do not possess it as it is obvious that those who have land have more income and can pat taxes in comparison with those who do not have land as additional indirect income. The “ability-to-pay” idea seems rather attractive to many philosophers of public finances. This point of view is interesting as it preserves incentives.
The core idea of this philosophic idea is “a logical extension of the productivity theory of distribution where people are to be rewarded according to their contribution to the joint products of the economy” (Gaffney, 1998, p. 177). Considering the building on the new houses, the landowners in this case should be reduced from the taxation as new buildings promote the development of the city and land, in this case, is considered as public value. Additionally, the flourishing of a city increases the land taxation and the income for public needs.
Governmental Accounting and Nongovernmental Accounting
According to Governmental GAAP Guide 2009, governmental accounting deals with public corporations and the bodies which work with politics. Additionally, the entities may be considered as the government if they meet the following requirements, the elections to one or more states takes place, “the potential for unilateral dissolution by a government with net assets reverting to a government” (in Crawford & Loyd, 2008, p.1-24) and an entity possess the power to enact a tax levy.
Nongovernment accounting deals with the entities which do not possess any of these characteristics. Therefore, it may be said that the main difference between governmental accounting and nongovernmental accounting is the details of payment. If the financial operations are directed at elections and other supportive aspects, the accounting is governmental. If payment is directed at other particular purposes, the accounting is governmental.
The Relationship between Budgeting and Financial Reporting in Government
Reposting has become one of the most essential aspects of budgeting and governmental accounting. The information resented in reports is aimed at helping control budget expenses and follow the violation if it takes place. In most cases the information is delivered every 45 days after the end of a fiscal year, however, there are situations when reports are to be completed within a month or for special demand. The reports are created by the audits which work in and auditory companies.
Audits work in accordance with the particular rules and they bare responsibility for the reports they complete. Audits may give the company several days to eliminate the violations where they took place and present the report without those violations however with the mentioning that they were. Audit report is an important document which shows the current state of affairs in finances of the company.
Works Cited
Crawford, M. A. & Loyd, D. S. (2008). Governmental GAAP Guide 2009. New York: CCH.
Gaffney, M. (1998). The Philosophy of Public Finance. In F. Harrison (Ed.), The Losses of Nations: Deadweight Politics versus Public Rent Dividends (175-206). London: Othila Press.