Local Government Accounting Standard-Setting in Australia: Did Constituents Participate?
(2000) Local Government Accounting Standard-Setting in Australia: Did Constituents Participate? . Financial Accountability & Management 16(4):pp. 373-396.
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Abstract
The Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (PSASB) has developed accounting standards for the public sector in Australia. A procedural ‘due process’ has been developed to protect the openness, neutrality and independence of Australian accounting standard-setting both in the private and public sectors. Prior research into constituent participation in the ‘due process’ for specific cases in the public sector has raised doubts as to whether the ‘due process’ operated in an open, neutral and independent manner. It has found that account preparers were under-represented in their responses and used less sophisticated lobbying strategies than other respondents. The research also concluded that some constituents had favourable access to the ‘due process’, and that standard setters did not receive all pertinent information from constituents. This paper examines constituent participation in the ‘due process’ for the first public sector accounting standard, that for local government (AAS 27). The submissions made on the exposure draft preceding the standard - ED 50 - have been analysed using content analysis. The findings suggest that account preparers were well-represented in their responses and adopted the lobbying strategy of weighting their responses with supporting argument for the most controversial issues. Contrary to prior research, the paper concludes that in the case of ED 50 there is no evidence that the ‘due process’ failed to operate in an open and neutral manner.
| Item Type: | Journal Article |
|---|---|
| Status: | Published |
| Keywords: | Public Sector Accounting Standards Board; Due process; Local Governments, AAS 27; Australia. |
| Subjects: | 360000 Policy and Political Science > 360200 Policy and Administration > 360201 Public Policy 350000 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services > 350100 Accounting, Auditing and Accountability > 350107 Other Accounting |
| ID Code: | 2264 |
| Deposited By: | Stanley, Trevor A |
| Deposited On: | 25 November 2005 |
| Alternative Locations: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1468-0408.00113 |
| Copyright Owner: | Copyright 2000 Blackwell Publishing |
| Copyright Statement: | The definitive version is available at www.blackwell-synergy.com |