Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis Report (Assessment)

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Introduction

When working as an accountant, it is necessary to correctly use the established accounting principles for governmental and non-governmental organizations, referring to authoritative and non-authoritative sources. These principles are significant for researching and addressing a variety of state, as well as local, financial accounting issues (Ruppel, 2015). The purpose of this paper is to use the governmental GAAP hierarchy for ranking the guidance to address the issues.

Issue 1

To resolve the first problem, it is necessary to start by researching GASB Interpretation as the most authoritative standard. The second step is consulting GASB Technical Bulletin, and then, it is necessary to use FASB Statement (or FASB Concept Statement) if no information related to the problem was found (Granof, Khumawala, Calabrese, & Smith, 2016). The final step to complete is referring to a governmental accounting textbook.

Issue 2

When resolving the second issue, the first step is consulting AICPA Industry Audit and Accounting Guides. The next step is the reference to AICPA Practice Bulletins that are applicable specifically to state and local governments. If the required information is absent in these sources, it is possible to refer to a widely recognized industry practice (Ruppel, 2015). The final reference should be made to AICPA Issues Papers.

Issue 3

The key standard for addressing governmental financial accounting issues is the GASB Statement that should be consulted at the beginning of the research. The second source to use is AIPCA Statements of Position. In the case when the needed information is not found, it is possible to use Questions and Answers that are published by the GASB (Flood, 2015; Ruppel, 2015). The fourth step is the reference to International Accounting Standards Committee Statements.

Issue 4

If the issue is related to the state or local government area, the application of the FASB Statement is not appropriate, and only the use of FASB pronouncements is possible in this case. Therefore, research needs to be started by consulting the position statement of the GASB Emerging Issues Task Force (Flood, 2015; Granof et al., 2016). Then, it is necessary to refer to a leading accounting textbook. The final step is the reference to an article published in a leading audit journal.

Issue 5

GASB Technical Bulletin and FASB Technical Bulletin have the same level of authority, but they are applicable to different types of organizations. If the issue under analysis is related to the governmental organization, GASB Technical Bulletin is prioritized. In this case, FASB Technical Bulletin is not applicable, but it can be consulted after searching all standards that are directly related to governmental organizations (Flood, 2015). Thus, the second step is the work with GASB Concept Statement to retrieve useful information (Ruppel, 2015). The next step is the review of the speech made by a leading accounting professor in order to find possible answers to the questions related to the issue.

Conclusion

Following the GAAP hierarchy, accountants can rank available sources for resolving issues according to their relevance and authority. Thus, those statements that are appropriate to be used when working for governmental organizations are not applicable to for-profit organizations. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the difference between these accounting standards. In this paper, standards and accounting principles proposed for each issue have been ranked according to their appropriateness to be used in a concrete case.

References

Flood, J. M. (2015). Wiley GAAP 2015: Interpretation and application of generally accepted accounting principles. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

Granof, M. H., Khumawala, S. B., Calabrese, T. D., & Smith, D. L. (2016). Government and not-for-profit accounting: Concepts and practices (7th ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

Ruppel, W. (2015). Wiley GAAP for Governments 2015: Interpretation and application of generally accepted accounting principles for state and local governments. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2021, August 7). Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis. https://ivypanda.com/essays/governmental-generally-accepted-accounting-principles-hierarchy-analysis/

Work Cited

"Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis." IvyPanda, 7 Aug. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/governmental-generally-accepted-accounting-principles-hierarchy-analysis/.

References

IvyPanda. (2021) 'Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis'. 7 August.

References

IvyPanda. 2021. "Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis." August 7, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/governmental-generally-accepted-accounting-principles-hierarchy-analysis/.

1. IvyPanda. "Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis." August 7, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/governmental-generally-accepted-accounting-principles-hierarchy-analysis/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Governmental Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Hierarchy Analysis." August 7, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/governmental-generally-accepted-accounting-principles-hierarchy-analysis/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1