TSCPA News

GASB Issues Implementation Guide No. 2018-1

May 22, 2018

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board’s recently released implementation guidance to explain and elaborate on some of its recent standards.

Implementation Guide No. 2018-1, Implementation Guidance Update–2018, includes information about how to apply GASB’s recent standards on pensions, other post-employment benefits, the statistical section, regulatory reporting, and tax abatement disclosures. This prompted criticism from several groups that question how the board expects state and local governments to follow its disclosure guidance for tax abatements.

According to GASB, its implementation guidance was intended to help governments determine when the forgiveness of property taxes should be classified as a tax abatement, but critics say that if the proposed implementation guidance is finalized, many abatements will escape disclosure. In particular, the guide suggests that certain tax increment financing deals, subsidies that are often used to fund public infrastructure, would be exempt from GASB Statement 77, Tax Abatement Disclosures.

The Implementation Guide also has amendments to some of GASB’s previously issued implementation guidance on some related topics.

The requirements of the new implementation guide take effect for reporting periods starting after June 15, 2018. The guide can be downloaded for free from GASB’s website.

 

WANT TO LEARN MORE? Register now for TSCPA's Governmental and Not-for-Profit Conference, June 4-5, 2018 for the latest GASB Updates with Paulina Haro, Supervising Project manager with the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.