Government Financial Reporting - Essay Example

Government financial reporting School: Introduction It is universally accepted that the citizens of different countries, national leaders and public workers require, and use the data reflecting the consolidation of national performance measurement. In an equally common way, many people would agree that the reporting of performance information to the public is still young and underdeveloped in some parts of the world. More puzzling, still, is the fact that there has been a nation-wide unwillingness to surrender performance information to external reviewers of performance (Anderson & Henriksen, 2006). The evidence of the unwillingness to share accountability and performance information is evident from the fact that many of the municipalities in the US, are still doing all they can, to keep the information a secret. The situation compels citizens to question, whether elected workers and public administrators operating at the different levels of government administration accept the ideals of transparency, public accountability, engaging the public and the improvement of the performance outcomes of the government (Akmana et al., 2005). Irrespective of the fact that many American municipalities are not mandated to tender their performance information, many of them are embracing transparency and accountability. In an attempt to explore the levels of transparency and engaging the public in financial reporting, this paper will explore the actions of officials and governments, especially those demonstrating improvements from previous levels. Framework of reporting and the milestones made by the government in increasing transparency and accountability Following the election of President Obama, the new administration took a bold step towards the creation of an era where the government operated in ways that demonstrate transparency and openness. One action that exhibited Obama’s dedication towards improving the transparency of his government was making of a memorandum on accountability. The memorandum required the American administration to increase its openness, as evidence of accountability. In particular, the Obama administration called for unprecedented levels of government openness, which entailed the revelation of the ways that government agencies operate, by tendering its data to the public (Yang & Melitski, 2007). The initiative was aimed at improving the extent to which the citizens of America explore the workings of the government, and evaluate whether the government and its leaders were performing and meeting public expectations. The positive effects of engaging the public and providing them with information include that they develop a sense of trust in the workings of the government. The initiatives adopted in light of the goal included the development of national websites for providing the public with vital information. One of these sites is Recovery.gov; it is an open source providing information on the spending of USD 787 billion. The portal was created to provide the information to the public, in a manner that allows them to study it and derive meaningful understanding of the operations and workings of the government (GSA, 2009). Many of the municipal level administrations have found the internet an important platform, where they report and highlight the performance milestones attained. It is not entirely clear, whether the change of behavior has been triggered by the political interests of political leaders, or the need to work in ways that validate the work of local governments to a larger extent. Irrespective of what the motivation for the change was, the highlighting of excellence over the internet is an essential move towards improving the service delivery of the government. Some surveys carried out during the 2000s showed an increase in the usage of ICT, in aiding the operations of government administrations (Akmana et al., 2005). The common trends demonstrated include the provision of e-consultation, e-voting, electronic public forums, and the internet-based lodging of complaints and questions related to the working of the government (Gibson & Lusoli, 2002). The evidence of important performance information over the online platform to the public gives the indication that e-governance is likely to be attained soon. Further, it is possible to view the situation as the rebirth and re-development of e-government, noting that it has become mandatory for municipalities to own websites, and that it is an expected practice point. The trends demonstrate that public administrators are looking for more ways to widen the engagement of the public, through the provision of more information for engaging them (Ammons, 2007). One of the initiatives that changed the public’s outlook about accountability is the release of the District of Columbia’s application for monitoring democracy levels. The system draws upon the conception of the public to fashion the information gathered around D.C more understandable and useful for the members of the public. Under the leadership and administration of the CTO, the district hosted a contest to study ways of utilizing the public information collected around D. C. The effects of the public initiative include that it produced more savings than any other initiative launched in the past. The surprising point was that it made its point in just thirty days after it was launched. The provision of government data over the public domain is just half the challenge, as the conception of the mission entailed the collection of public feedback. Following the collection of the feedback offered by the public, the respective governments expect to identify the information that is highly useful to the public, as a way to widen the engagement of the public in the decision-making of governments on public policy (GSA, 2009). The launch of the various online-based initiatives is expected to further the course of improving the cooperative partnership made between the public and the government. Activating the virtual networks has widened the scope of cooperative working between the government and citizens. The outcomes include the improvement of problem solving, following the widened scope of government-citizen engagement and interactions (Anderson & Henriksen, 2006). Case examples of government initiatives used for accountability improvement The democratization of public data The utilization of IT systems and infrastructures has increased the availability of data to all interested users. The democratized presentation of government information and data has improved governmental internal operations, and has initiated the course of transforming public service delivery. The democratization of public data has widened the scope of the government from the traditional outlook of accountability and transparency, to the role of data delivery in aid of citizen engagement and productivity improvement. The integration of technology has proved it to be a changer for the platform, including that it has widened the transformations of allowing for more collaboration and participation for the members of the public. From another angle, government’s provision of governmental/ public information as a public good enables citizens to leverage it for useful purposes (Akmana et al., 2005). This second outlook was highly useful in presenting the survey findings gathered through a study by Rutgers University, exploring the expectations of the public in the areas of transparency. Practices already put in force by the government The launch of Web 2.0 systems and processes has changed the outlook of public service in many ways. The changes include that the government is equipping external stakeholders and its citizens with the implements needed to gather information about areas of interest. One such trend which has been shaping local and state government operations is the provision of information on the collection of tax money and also the spending of the money. More importantly, the important information is presented in presentation styles that are highly comprehensible for all citizens (Akmana et al., 2005). One case study that has attained this goal is the Texas Website on the development and augmentation of government reporting and accountability. The website explains three main governmental initiatives in the areas of reporting and accountability. Special attention is offered to the critical areas of financial accounting, public expenditure and the transparency of service delivery mechanisms. Another state that has made strides in the improvement of government accountability is Georgia, following its initiative branded the gateway to access for major documents and government information. The information provided over the platform includes that on the areas of government expenditure of tax collections. The platform also outlines the spending of other state revenues, and is a major milestone towards the improvement of the state’s commitment to good governance and customer service (GSA, 2009). Similarly, New Zealand is advancing towards the increased use of online tools in engaging its citizens, and integrating their views in important government initiatives. In a more advanced way, online communities have been proved to be very effective partners in the course of improving the disclosure of important government information and also the improvement of service delivery (Ho, 2005). As recognition for the importance of adopting an innovative approach in the storage and maintenance of national records, the E-discovery and accountability initiative offers the structure for increasing the public’s access to public documents. The measurement of the performance benchmarks covered by e-government 2.0 offers a new and innovative platform for evaluating the success of government initiative and investments. The partnership engagement made by government accountants has, very evidently, offered the framework needed by the public to understand the attitudes and views of the public on accountability and transparency (Akmana et al., 2005). The outcomes of the disclosure initiatives included opening up the government’s work for public review and also increased public engagement in the administration of national service. The attention offered to malpractices like corruption The increment of citizen engagement and transparence augmentation offers a part of the solution needed to end the problem of corruption. One of the industries that have realized considerable traction and strength over the past decade, following the increment of transparency is that of petroleum, mining and energy production. The initiative of fighting corruption as an effort towards increasing the energy security focused on the common phenomenon of resource-rich regions and countries that have remained poor because of conflict and corruption. One case is India’s reform of land records through digitization. India’s economy is highly dependent on the disclosure of land titles and records. These records are very important for the economic working of the government and farmers, who are major contributors to the Indian economy. Land records and titles are used for a wide variety of uses, including their use for administrative purposes and proving land ownership (GSA, 2009). The streamlining of the irregularities that had affected the administration of agricultural activities and the oversight of agricultural programs was done through the India, land records initiatives. The initiative demonstrated the huge changes that could be caused by the computerization of information on land records on the work and the economic activities of Indian farmers (Ammons, 2007). Collaboration in government programs and operations The importance of addressing policy deficiencies and culture issues has been an important determinant of successful government collaboration. Collaboration between the government and its citizens is a major contributor of public’s engagement in the work of the government, towards the realization of a truly collaborative government system (Bingham, Nabatchi & O‘Leary, 2005). Through the increment of government transparency, governments are seeking to address these community-integrated problems and challenges by engaging the people, so as to find solutions to the complex problems of the modern society. One of the initiatives in the pipeline in this area is the Wiki-Government program, which integrates the utilization of social networks in the management and oversight of government functions. The generational transition will change the governing processes, towards the system where important decision are made in groups. The system will closely resemble the traditional system used in kingdoms like Athens, where public policy and changes were made at the public square. There, the people met in large numbers and explored the problems and issues of importance, especially those that influenced the course of policy frameworks and structures (Akmana et al., 2005). The same concept of a virtual public square offers an explanation about the working of the D.C’s recreation of the public square, in a manner that engages the people in collaborative governing, using collaborative technologies. Through the utilization of the innovative platform for cooperation, technological developments are at the core of confronting the many changes needed to increase the participation and engagement of the public (GSA, 2009). The utilization of the virtual platform in different initiatives and parts of the world demonstrates the effectiveness of the utilization of better communication at the different levels of government processes and policy development (Ammons, 2007). Conclusion Its is a universal truth that traditional government systems operated in covert means, and the opportunities for engaging the public were close to minimal. More recently, the same unwillingness to open public administration and the operations to the government has been an ill characterizing the public sector. For example, many American municipalities do not tender their performance highlights to the public, as a demonstration of openness and transparency. However, recent changes in government processes and frameworks have given evidence of a shift towards a more open system of government and public service delivery. In America, the election of Obama into power was one era that changed the engagement of the public in government operations, through the commitment made on government openness and transparency. One of the platforms that have been instrumental in changing the role played by the public and their access to government information is the Recovery.gov portal. The early adopters of government disclosure and openness were D.C, which launched the system for monitoring democracy levels. Case examples that demonstrated the effectiveness and the outcomes of citizen engagement include the launch of the web 2.0 platform, which changed the scope of public service delivery in many ways. Other states that have made strides in public disclosure include the state of Georgia. References Akmana, I., & Yazici, A., Alok, M., & Ali, A. (2005). E-Government: A global view and an empirical evaluation of some attributes of citizens. Government Information Quarterly, 22(2), 239-257. Ammons, D. (2007). Performance measurement: A tool for accountability and performance improvement. County and Municipal Government in North Carolina, 16, 1-12. Anderson, K., & Henriksen, H. (2006). E-Government maturity models: Extension of the Layne and Lee model. Government Information Quarterly, 23, 236-248. Bingham, L., Nabatchi, T., & O‘Leary, R. (2005). The new governance: Practices and processes for stakeholder and citizen participation in the work of government. Public Administration Review, 65(5), 528‐539. Gibson, R. & Lusoli, W. (2002). UK political participation online: The public response. A survey of citizens’ political activity via the internet. ESRI: Salford. GSA. (2009). Transparency in Government. International Solutions Newsletter, spring, 1-38. Ho, A. (2005). Accounting for the value of performance measurement from the perspective of Midwestern mayors. Journal of Public Administration Research & Theory, 16, 217-237. Yang, K., & Melitski, J. (2007). Competing and complimentary values in information technology strategic planning-Observations from ten states. Public Performance Management Review, 30(1), 426-452. Read More