CONTABILIDAD GUBERNAMENTAL: ¿Nuevo Marco Conceptual o Normas Contables Particulares?

Abstract

The final product of the accounting, regardless of their specialty, must meet an objective, which is to provide useful information that reflects reality and social behavior of the entity. Considering that the financial accounting refers to a specialty which requires the consideration of standards for the preparation of reports, the challenge is to find a way to resolve the current difficulties related principally to the recognition and measurement of intangible assets, as tangible assets lose significance in the assessment of the entity as a whole. Similar consideration should be made about the final product of governmental accounting.
In regards to the standards of the public sector, with the enactment of the Financial Administration and Control of the National Public Sector Law Nº 24156, arose a very important qualitative and quantitative progress: were approved the generally accepted accounting principles to the public sector - resolution Nº 2595 emanated from the coordinating body of the financial administration, the Secretariat of Finance of the Ministry of Economy and Public Finance, motivated by the Contaduría General de la Nación which is the governing body of the accounting system, and also was implanted the Double-entry bookkeeping system.
Fundamental principles and objectives of government accounting system - which must be taken in accordance with the “generally accepted accounting principles and standards applicable to the public sector." as required by Article 87, paragraph e, of the Financial Administration and Control Systems of the National Public Sector Law No. 24156- are contained in the different sections of the Articles 86 and 87.
The financial Administration Law express that the Government Accounting Office must dictate standards of government accounting for the entire national public sector. In this context is designated the accounting methodology that will apply and the periodicity, structure and characteristics of financial accounting statements issued by public bodies.
We must take into consideration that the public sector has a number of unique characteristics that may influence when defining the Conceptual Framework. They are:

1) External elements to the organization or of indirect influence: they are related to accounting concepts as recognition of the operations and requirements of the information, which can justify the need to adopt certain practices:

• Fragmentation of power
• Responsibility
• Absence of market.

2) Internal elements to the organization or of direct influence: they are the elements that directly affect the requirements of the accounting information, such as:

• Providing a service as a priority
• Non Profit
• Difficulties for the measurement of the output
• Emphasis on financial position
• Importance of the budget and of the legality.

When defining a Conceptual Framework, the elements that compose it are clearly identified: the objectives of accounting information, its qualitative characteristics, elements of accounting or financial statements and capital maintenance concept. If we refer to the segment of the Governmental Accounting, integration within that structure, may give rise to specific interpretations of its key elements but never to the consideration of a different conceptual framework, because it is understood that this framework must be unique for both segments: financial accounting and Government, because in them, issues of accounting theory and definition of assets, liabilities and results were agreed.
The heterogeneity of the public sector manifests itself in that the organizations that compose it, not only provide a variety of different services, but also in the legal, social, economic and political characteristics that present. These organizations possess powers and responsibilities, as well as different objectives, sources of funding and organizational structures that lead to adopt different accounting practices that differ, in some cases from those applied to private entities, which justifies the issuance of own rules for Public Sector.
In addition, accounting or financial Statements are important documents that allow society - as taxpayers– to evaluate the responsible administration of public funds by the Government, related to the budget norm that will approve the volitional organ. (National Congress).
Precise standards are crucial to demand accountability of public sector entities, while respecting the requirements of the accounting information that should satisfy the financial reports produced by these institutions and that the legislator has given to the Government Accounting Office.
The public sector must ensure that he has high quality and a transparent regulatory process to ratify the reliability and usefulness of government financial statements. It should be added that the current general rules applied in the reports of the National Public Sector (resolution 2595 of the Secretariat of Finance of the Ministry of Economy and Public Finance) were issued prior to the International Public Sector Accounting Standards emanating from the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).
The differences between the local context and the international, the not considered national developments in international standards and any differences of the normative structure of public accounting with respect to the established in these standards, are justifying, widely , that the Government issue his own standards , using the international standards as recommendations or best practices.