The New Financial Statements: Reconnecting with the Basics of Public Financial Management

Abstract

The 1999 release of Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement No. 34, Basic Financial Statements—and Management's Discussion and Analysis—for State and Local Governments, was not just a future shock for government officials. It also necessitates a major revision of existing curricula for teaching public financial management. This article aims to accomplish two tasks. The first is to offer a basic introduction to the primary features of the new financial statements that Statement 34 requires. The second is to explore how the GASB's attempt to better meet the accountability needs of governments and citizens through Statement 34 is a unique opportunity to reassert fundamental concepts in the teaching of financial management.³

The views expressed in this article are those of the author. Official positions of the GASB are determined only after extensive due process and deliberation.