论地方政府负债与公共经济绩效评价

近些年来,我国地方政府负债数额大大增加,大到有风险了,对这一现象如何认识,不仅牵涉到财政体制的问题,还对政府的公共经济管理绩效有较大影响。本文根据中央和地方财政支出比重的22年数据说明增加的程度,然后从几个方面剖析地方政府负债猛增的原因,评价地方政府负债这一公共支出对公共经济绩效正反两面的影响,提出对地方政府负债要合理利用和管理,促进公共经济绩效提升。     

地方政府公共服务职能研究

在我国现阶段,由于长期以来重经济轻服务的倾向,导致公共服务投入不足,供需矛盾突出,而地方政府贴近公众日常生活,相比中央政府更容易了解民众的公共需求,因此,针对目前地方政府公共服务职能存在的问题,中央与各级地方政府要上下联动,采取措施转变地方政府职能,加强地方政府的公共服务职能。     

An International Comparison of Materiality Guidance for Governments, Public Services and Charities

The annual report is promoted and regarded as the primary medium of accountability for government agencies. In Australia, anecdotal evidence suggests the quality of annual reports is variable. However, there is scant empirical evidence on the quality of reports. The aim of this research is to gauge the quality of annual reporting by local governments in Queensland, and to investigate the factors that may contribute to that level of quality. The results of the study indicate that although the quality of reporting by local governments has improved over time, councils generally do not report information on aspects of corporate governance, remuneration of executive staff, personnel, occupational health and safety, equal opportunity policies, and performance information. In addition, the results indicate there is a correlation between the size of the local government and the quality of reporting but the quality of disclosures is not correlated with the timeliness of reports. The study will be of interest to the accounting profession, public sector regulators who are responsible for the integrity of the accountability mechanisms and public sector accounting practitioners. It will form the basis for future longitudinal research, which will map changes in the quality of local government annual reporting.     

The Usefulness of Financial Reporting in Spanish Local Governments

Since 1992, accounting for Spanish local governments has been undergoing substantial change. The application of a new regulation has introduced the double entry system, an approximation to the accounting terminology used in the private sector and the presentation of financial statements beyond the purely budgetary reporting. In this context, the paper attempts to examine the extent to which the new regulation has achieved the objectives of financial reporting, who the users of the information could be, what the usefulness of the financial statements is and what they are used for in local governments. The results prove that the financial reporting of local governments can be useful for potential users like audit institutions, financial institutions or creditors. However, there is a long way to go before we can say that the information is used to the maximum. This implies that further progress is necessary in the use of financial information in local governments, and fundamentally it is necessary to introduce techniques of financial analysis traditionally used in business entities.     

Role of Internal Audit in Australian Local Government Governance: A Step in the Right Direction

While the functions of local government are many and varied, the primary role is to provide effective performance which arguably will coincide with good governance for its municipality. Internal audit and relevant controls play a key role in ensuring that good governance. The introduction of accrual accounting in local government certainly has added complexity and additional risks, with cases of fraud, corruption and high risk investments in several Australian local councils being reported periodically by the media. Those cases have been accompanied by proposed governance reforms including the introduction of an internal audit function to address the issues raised. Although seen as an essential part of the governance process, the results here suggest there is still some confusion as to the role of the internal audit and its perceived effectiveness in Australian local government.     

Making Management Auditable: The Implementation of Best Value in Local Government

This article examines the implementation of Best Value—an audit tool of the U.K. government's modernization policy—in local government, specifically in Scotland. This is a study of the impact of this key concept, primarily on the management of these public services. The aim of Best Value Audit is to enhance transparency and accountability of management actions in local government. The article draws on Power's (1997 ) Audit Society thesis to inform this research. The Best Value approach has been heavily influenced by audit processes and oversight bodies both in its design and implementation. This article supports the Power thesis of the Audit Society: It reveals the manner in which audit practices are deployed by agencies of central government with the intent to shape the management of local government.     

The Main Determinants of the Use of the Cost Accounting System in Portuguese Local Government

Abstract: This paper explores the main determinants of the use of the cost accounting system (CAS) in Portuguese local government (PLG). Regression analysis is used to study the fit of a model of accounting changes in PLG, focused on cost accounting systems oriented to activities and outputs. Based on survey data gathered from PLG, we have found that the use of information in decision‐making and external reporting is still a mirage. We obtain evidence about the influence of the internal organizational context (especially the lack of support and difficulties in the CAS implementation) in the use for internal purposes, while the institutional environment (like external pressures to implement the CAS) appears to be more deterministic of the external use. Results strengthen the function of external reporting to legitimate the organization's activities to external stakeholders. On the other hand, some control variables (like political competition, usefulness and experience) also evidence some explanatory power in the model. Some mixed results were found that appeal to further research in the future. Our empirical results contribute to understand the importance of interconnecting the contingency and institutional approaches to gain a clear picture of cost accounting changes in the public sector.     

我国国家审计职能的演化规律研究

本文首先分析了国家审计职能的内涵和国家审计职能的演化特点。在此基础上,从国家审计的本质性职能和功能性职能两个方面,提出了国家审计职能演化的一般规律,即国家审计本质性职能恒久不变,但其内涵不断丰富外延不断扩大;国家审计功能性职能将被不断发掘和发现,具有发散性和收敛性。     

自然资源绩效审计的目标、内容和评价指标体系初探

经济的可持续发展和自然资源的逐渐匮乏使得自然资源的绩效审计十分重要。自然资源绩效审计作为一种新兴的审计类型,需从资金和资源配置、保护、利用的经济性、效率性、效果性和可持续性等方面开展评价,基于理论研究滞后于实践发展的现状,本文从自然资源管理目的、绩效审计的要求和已有的审计案例出发,阐述了自然资源绩效审计的宏观目标、微观目标和内容,并依据自然资源绩效审计的目标和内容,从自然资源政策、资金、开发保护、使用自然资源、收益分配等五个方面构建了自然资源绩效审计的评价指标体系。     

New development: Integration of budget and governmental accounting in Mexican states

ABSTRACT

Mexico recently introduced an accounting–budgeting framework compatible with the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). This article discusses the implementation of this framework, including the harmonization of information for the functional, administrative and economic budget categories for all Mexican states and for Mexico City. The author analysed public accounts and budgets prepared under the framework’s information requirements, as well as assessing the harmonization of accounts between the local, state and national levels of government. The results show an increase in both the amount and the harmonization of the public expenditure information being reported. This paper contributes to the literature of harmonization between financial reporting and budgeting processes (Dabbicco, G., & Mattei, G. (2020 Dabbicco, G. , & Mattei, G. (2020). The reconciliation of budgeting with financial reporting: A comparative study of Italy and the UK. Public Money & Management , 1–11. doi: 10.1080/09540962.2019.1708059 [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). The reconciliation of budgeting with financial reporting: A comparative study of Italy and the UK. Public Money & Management, 1–11).     

我国地方政府债券发行长效机制的构建研究

在经历了长期的沉寂之后,我国的地方政府债券在2009年正式启动。虽然近期在二级市场上,地方政府债券遭到投资者的冷遇,但地方政府债券的持续发行有其理论与现实基础,从中国经济长远发展的角度考虑,应当构建地方政府债券发行的长效运行机制。在短期内应尽快建立地方政府债券发行的激励与约束机制以防范地方债务风险,在中长期应不断深化财政体制改革,逐步实现真正的地方政府债券制度安排。     

Benchmarking as a Tool for the Modernisation of Local Government

This paper examines benchmarking as a tool of the modernisation process in local government and the contradictory tensions in the Best Value scheme are explored. Benchmarking is shown to encapsulate the dichotomous nature of a modernising philosophy which espouses innovation and local solutions alongside the government's centralising tendencies. One consequence is the advancement of 'compulsory' and 'defensive' modes of benchmarking with local authorities benchmarking for external accountability reasons; issues of tangible improvement are secondary concerns. These tensions are viewed as irreconcilable, the implication is that local government will need to carefully manage and evaluate its benchmarking activities.     

地方党政主要领导干部经济责任同步审计的探索和实践

领导干部经济责任审计无论是从世界范围来看还是从我国来看,都是比较新的课题。本文对目前党中央、国务院关于地方党政领导干部经济职责的文件规定进行了归纳综述,据此总结和分析了地方党政领导干部经济责任审计的主要内容和范围。并以审计署首次开展的省部级地方党委政府主要领导干部经济责任同步审计实践为基础,提出了开展经济责任审计应采取自上而下与自下而上相结合等3个基本方法,探讨了界定党政领导干部经济责任的主要原则及其在实践中的运用,并针对目前经济责任审计的难点问题给出了明确责任划分标准、建立规范的经济责任评价框架、进一步构建经济责任审计大格局等3点建议。     

New Labour and the Modernisation of British Local Government: A Critique

The modernisation agenda for local government is based on questionable political assumptions. It has the attributes of a theological concept. This paper examines the concept of modernisation of local government by focusing on three dimensions (1) governance, (2) management and (3) finance. This analysis suggests the modernisation agenda is limited in scope and vision.     

税费运行现状及其改革对策研究

目前我国的税费存在很多弊端,使税收的杠杆作用和国家的宏观调控能力下降。税费改革的总体思路是:以充分发挥中央和地方政府在公共部门活动中的作用为基本出发点,对现有的行政事业收费与基金实行“一清、二转、三改、四留”。     

New development: Determinants of financial performance in public organizations

In the slipstream of NPM, public organizations worldwide have had to increase their financial performance by adopting management practices. Nonetheless, financial performance (FP) might be mostly predicted by contingencies that are not within direct managerial control. Drawing on evidence from 308 Flemish municipalities, this article shows that organizational and environmental contingencies affect FP, but a significant amount of variation in FP is unexplained—indicating that management could well matter.     

The Market for External Audit Services in the Public Sector: An Empirical Analysis of NHS Trusts

This study investigates the market for audit services in the UK National Health Service (NHS). The market has a number of interesting features, including the presence of the Audit Commission as a regulator, appointer and provider of audit services. Following a theoretical overview of audit pricing in the NHS, evidence is provided on the behaviour of private sector auditors in an environment where audit risk characteristics differ from the private sector. The research also investigates, for the first time in the public sector, the relationship between audit fees and non–audit (consultancy) fees. Comparisons are also drawn between audit fees in the public and private sectors in an analysis of audit fees by industry. Despite some key similarities, the study shows that a number of differences exist between private and public sector audit fee models. In particular, we find no evidence of Big 6 (or mid–tier) auditor premiums, but we do find a significant negative relationship between audit and consultancy fees providing support for the 'knowledge spill–over' hypothesis. In addition, the fees charged to trusts appear significantly lower than their private sector counterparts, despite trust auditors having additional duties to perform. Possible explanations for this finding are offered in the paper.     

转移支付审计中应正确处理的几个关系

本文立足于近年的审计实践,根据十一五规划和十七大确定的财税改革目标,提出应处理好转移支付审计与公共财政改革、社会经济发展、加强依法行政的关系,以综合绩效审计为着力点和落脚点,监督与服务并重,公平与效率兼顾,促进规划、计划与资金管理的结合,促进转移支付政策效益和整体效益的提高。     

House Prices and the Structure of Local Government: An Application of Spatial Statistics

When two internally homogeneous communities decide to jointly provide a public service, residents of each community lose some control over the public service provision. The loss of control over public schooling provision contributes to a $2,929 or 3.5 percent drop in constant-quality house value. Increased heterogeneity of the consolidated district is responsible for almost all the drop; the increased number of service recipients alone is responsible for almost none of the drop. The spatial hedonic, corrected for sample selection bias, also suggests economies of scale gains from school district consolidation must be worth at least $3,369—4 percent of house value.     

Considerations on the Evolution of the National Budget Functions: From Internal Relevance to External Value

The paper is concerned with the interrelationship between the national budget, the role of the State in the economy and the public financial situation existing during different historical periods beginning with the unification of Italy. The paper examines the functions of the national budget during the Liberal, Corporatist and Republican periods, and how these have changed as a result of institutional changes, and developments in the socio-economic situation which have influenced economic policy. We focus particularly on the public accountancy reform of 1923-1924 which, in combination with administrative reform, contained some important innovations. The system that emerged is found to have been clearly connected with that of the previous period, the innovations being based on the tenets of liberal ideology and the efficiency of the public administration. In this context the centralisation of the General Accounting Office in 1923 is seen as the result of actions begun during an earlier period. On the other hand, the national budget continued to carry out the functions of regulating the relationship between the various sections of the Government. Nevertheless, although the necessity was felt at this time to control the financial flows, it is only with the advent of the Republican State that the budget takes on an instrumental role in influencing the economy. During the Republican period, the relationship between the institutions and the economy changed, with public finance becoming the hub of economic development and the national budget developing a new function, with the use of government spending for macroeconomic purposes.