Skip to content
Breadcrumbs

Reporting Requirements for Annual Financial Reports of State Agencies and Universities

Note: To navigate this guide on a mobile device you must use the Table of Contents.

Reporting Requirements for Annual Financial Reports of State Agencies and Universities

General Accounting

Governmental Reporting Overview
Full Accrual Basis of Accounting

The full accrual basis of accounting recognizes the financial effect of events that impact an entity during the accounting period, regardless of whether cash was received or spent. In business, full accrual accounting is commonly used to determine a more accurate net profit, to measure the financial position of the entity and to match income with expenses for the period. In government, the determination of a net profit is not the primary objective; however, under GASB 34, government-wide financial statements (GWFS) are presented using the full accrual method.

Agency Requirement for the Government-wide Financial Statements (GWFS)

The GWFS must be presented on a full accrual basis of accounting for both governmental and proprietary fund types for the ACFR and for stand-alone or audited reports. Some agencies are not required to prepare the GWFS, but all agencies must submit information regarding the conversion from one basis to the other.