The IPSASB unanimously approved Exposure Draft (ED 69), Public Sector Specific Financial Instruments: Amendments to IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments. ED 69 provides guidance on how to account for several instruments the IPSASB has identified as unique to the public sector.

ED 69 will be published in August 2019 with a comment period until December 31, 2019.

Please register on the IPSASB website to ensure that you receive updates when this document and others are published:https://www.ifac.org/user/register

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The IPSASB unanimously approved ED 68,Improvements to IPSAS, 2019. The IPSASB excluded improvements related to the definition of a business and materiality in the IASB’s, Improvements to IFRS 2018. These Improvements might be considered in the future as separate narrow scope projects.
ED 68 will be published in July 2019 with a comment period until September 30, 2019.

Please register on the IPSASB website to ensure that you receive updates when this document and others are published:https://www.ifac.org/user/register

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Two guest speakers presented different perspectives on lessor accounting. The IPSASB directed the Leases Task Force to assess the rationale for departure from the lessor accounting requirements in IFRS 16,Leases. The Task Force will make recommendations to the IPSASB for consideration at the September 2019 meeting.

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The IPSASB approved a revised project brief for Infrastructure Assets.  Staff will develop a list of issues for review at the September 2019 IPSASB meeting taking account of discussion at the 2017 Public Sector Standard Setters Forum together with a proposed plan for addressing them in accordance with the project roadmap.

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The IPSASB decided that the distinction between operational and non-operational heritage assets is not useful for analyzing either the recognition or measurement of heritage assets. However, the usage of heritage assets could impact measurement. The IPSASB reviewed recognition, measurement and presentation issues raised in responses to the 2017 Consultation Paper,Financial Reporting for Heritage. Staff and the Task Force will provide a plan to the IPSASB at its September meeting, which identifies required heritage-related guidance, the potential impact on IPSAS, and prioritization and timing for delivery.

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The IPSASB approved the core text in Exposure Draft (ED) 70, Revenue with Performance Obligations, which addresses transactions where an entity earns revenue in exchange for goods or services, and also includes the public sector performance obligation approach. The IPSASB approved a list of examples, including public sector specific examples, to illustrate the principles in ED 70 and instructed staff to continue to develop disclosures, illustrative examples, and the basis for conclusions.

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The IPSASB confirmed that revenue that arises from transactions that are not a result of a binding arrangement shall be recognized when receivable. In September, the IPSASB will consider the relationship between performance obligations and present obligations and will further discuss when a liability of the resource recipient arises for enforceable arrangements that do not have performance obligations as defined in ED 70.

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The IPSASB confirmed its tentative decision in March to focus on transactions where entities transfer resources to recipients, without receiving goods or services in return. The IPSASB reviewed the Government Finance Statistics (GFS) Manual, concluding that the GFS definition of a transfer encapsulated the IPSASB’s thinking, and decided to base the scope of the ED on the GFS definition. The IPSASB also discussed how to address subsidies, appropriations, levies, subsequent measurement and examples in the ED.

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• A podcast highlighting key points of the June 2019 meeting is now available here.

• The next meeting of the IPSASB will be in Lisbon, Portugal from September 24-27, 2019. For more information, or to register as an observer, visit the IPSASB website.