Accounting professionalism and local government gaap adoption: A national study
Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management
ISSN: 1096-3367
Article publication date: 1 March 2014
Abstract
We examine the factors that associate with local government decisions to comply with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). GAAP non-compliance is surprisingly common among larger local governments, and that trend has important implications for public policy, financial management transparency, and government accountability. To examine the factors that drive GAAP compliance, we develop a conceptual framework based on the politico-economic perspective on accounting policy choice, and then test that model with data from a national survey of local government finance professionals. Our key contribution is that we incorporate accounting professionalism. The findings suggest that for many local governments the decision to adopt GAAP is a response to the pressures of professionalism rather than a rational response to political and economic motives.
Citation
Khumawala, S., Marlowe, J. and Gordon Neely, D. (2014), "Accounting professionalism and local government gaap adoption: A national study", Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 292-312. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBAFM-26-02-2014-B003
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014 by PrAcademics Press