The IPSASB held its first meeting of 2019 from March 12-15, 2019 in Washington, D.C., USA.

Highlights from the IPSASB March 2019 meeting in Washington DC.

• 00:11      Welcome and introduction: John Stanford, Technical Director
• 01:09      Chair’s overview of outreach event co-hosted with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, Leveraging Financial Reporting for Fiscal Reporting and Management of Public Wealth: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 03:30      Chair’s meeting overview: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 05:47      Measurement: Dave Warren, Principal
• 06:49      Revenue from Binding Arrangements with Purchasers: Amon Dhliwayo, Manager
• 07:38      Revenue – Enforceability and Performance Obligations: Joanna Spencer, Manager
• 08:40      Chair’s concluding comments: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 12:04      Closing remarks: John Stanford, Technical Director

At a time of increasing momentum for IPSAS adoption and implementation globally, the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) today published its Strategy and Work Plan 2019-2023: Delivering Global Standards. Inspiring Implementation, which will shape the Board’s work and priorities for the next five years.

To ensure it delivers in the public interest, the IPSASB’s strategic objective is:

Strengthening Public Financial Management (PFM) globally through increasing adoption of accrual-based IPSAS. Delivered through two main areas of activity, both of which have a public interest focus:

• Developing and maintaining IPSAS and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for the public sector; and
• Raising awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption.

“Governments depend on the trust of their citizens and their national and international stakeholders in order to deliver their goals efficiently and effectively. The regular publication of high-quality accrual-based financial reports helps strengthen public financial management, and is a fundamental ingredient in maintaining that trust,” said IPSASB Chair Ian Carruthers.

“IPSAS-based information provides a comprehensive and comparable picture of a public sector entity’s financial performance and position. IPSAS adoption and implementation therefore represent fundamental steps for governments to take, not only to increase transparency and accountability to their citizens and stakeholders, but also to inform effective decision making, so contributing to fiscal stability and sustainability. Our new Strategy and Work Plan is intended both to support and to help inspire governments and other public sector organizations making that journey,” Mr. Carruthers added.

The IPSASB will implement its Strategy and Work Plan 2019-2023 through two streams:

• Delivering global standards by:
• Setting standards on public sector specific issues;
• Maintaining IFRS alignment;
• Developing guidance to meet users’ broader financial reporting needs;
• Inspiring their implementation by:
• Promoting IPSAS adoption and implementation; and
• Advocating the benefits of accrual in strengthening PFM.

The Board’s top standard-setting priorities through 2023 include completing its current public sector specific projects, notably revenue, leases, public sector measurement, heritage and infrastructure, as well as making progress with its new public sector specific projects, including natural resources.

The International Public Sector Financial Accountability Index projects that in five years, 65% of countries will report on the accrual basis. The IPSASB seeks to capitalize on this growth by working with key stakeholders to promote IPSAS adoption and implementation and the benefits of accrual information in strengthening PFM.   

About the IPSASB
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) works to strengthen public financial management globally through developing and maintaining accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards® (IPSAS®) and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It also raises awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption. The Board receives support from the Asian Development Bank, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, the New Zealand External Reporting Board, and the governments of Canada and New Zealand. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org.

About the Public Interest Committee
The governance and standard-setting activities of the IPSASB are overseen by the Public Interest Committee (PIC), to ensure that they follow due process and reflect the public interest. The PIC is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.

At a time of increasing momentum for IPSAS adoption and implementation globally, the IPSASB Strategy and Work Plan 2019-2023 sets out the Board's work and priorities through this five-year period. 

As outlined in the document, the IPSASB's strategic objective is: strengthening Public Financial Management (PFM) globally through increasing adoption of accrual-based IPSAS. This will be delivered through two main areas of activity, both of which have a public interest focus:

Highlights from the CAG's December 3, 2018 meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

• 00:11     Welcome and introduction: John Stanford, IPSASB Technical Director
• 00:54     Chair’s summary of the IPSASB CAG meeting: Thomas Müller-Marqués Berger, IPSASB CAG Chair
• 09:38     Closing remarks: John Stanford, IPSASB Technical Director

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) has released a new standard and an Exposure Draft on accounting for social benefits, and collective and individual services, respectively. Between them, International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS) 42, Social Benefits, and the related Exposure Draft (ED) 67, Collective and Individual Services and Emergency Relief (Amendments to IPSAS 19), address a wide range of significant government expenditures that directly impact the lives of citizens globally.

IPSAS 42 provides much-needed guidance on accounting for social benefits expenditure, which comprises about one fifth of GDP across OECD countries. It defines social benefits as cash transfers paid to specific individuals and/or households to mitigate the effect of social risk. Specific examples include state retirement benefits, disability benefits, income support and unemployment benefits. The new standard requires an entity to recognize an expense and a liability for the next social benefit payment.

“IPSAS 42 represents a big step forward for global financial reporting in the public sector and fills one of the major gaps in IPSASB’s suite of standards,” said IPSASB Chair Ian Carruthers. “Social benefits has been a challenging project because of the differing, strongly held views as to when a liability for social benefits arises. We are confident that the final standard will increase transparency and comparability in public sector financial reporting.”

In order to extend IPSASB’s guidance to public services as well as cash transfers, ED 67 proposes new requirements for accounting for collective services (such as defense at national-levels and street lighting at sub-national levels), individual services (such as healthcare and education) and emergency relief.

For collective and individual services, ED 67 proposes that an expense is recognized at the point of service delivery. ED 67 also proposes that an expense and liability is recognized for some emergency relief, but not where emergency relief is delivered as an ongoing activity of government.

“The distinction between social benefits and collective and individual services is important, but the accounting treatment of these transactions must be conceptually consistent,” said Mr. Carruthers. “Issuing ED 67 now, together with IPSAS 42, will allow our stakeholders to identify and account more consistently for the full range of social policy obligations of government.”

How to Comment
To access Exposure Draft 67 and its summary At-a-Glance document, or to submit a comment, visit the IPSASB website at www.ipsasb.org. Comments on the Exposure Draft are requested by May 31, 2019. The IPSASB encourages IFAC member organizations and regional accountancy organizations to promote the availability of this Exposure Draft to their members and employees.

About the IPSASB
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) works to strengthen public financial management globally through developing and maintaining accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards® (IPSAS®) and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It also raises awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption. The Board receives support from the Asian Development Bank, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, the New Zealand External Reporting Board, and the governments of Canada and New Zealand. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org.

About the Public Interest Committee
The governance and standard-setting activities of the IPSASB are overseen by the Public Interest Committee (PIC), to ensure that they follow due process and reflect the public interest. The PIC is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.

Amendments to IPSAS 36 and IPSAS 41, 2018 comprises: Part I: Long-term Interests in Associates and Joint Ventures (Amendments to IPSAS 36); and Part II: Prepayment Features with Negative Compensation (Amendments to IPSAS 41). Amendments in Part I and II arise from consideration of the annual improvements and narrow scope amendments projects of the IASB.

IPSAS 42, Social Benefits, provides guidance on accounting for social benefits expenditure. It defines social benefits as cash transfers paid to specific individuals and/or households to mitigate the effect of social risk. Specific examples include state retirement benefits, disability benefits, income support and unemployment benefits. The new standard requires an entity to recognize an expense and a liability for the next social benefit payment.