Fund Accounting and Municipality Analysis: Part I of II
Q: Will we be covering (today or next week) the various Development Agencies as they are a part of a city government? These entities request loans to fund their development activities. Thank you.
A: Neither Part I nor Part II specifically addresses the assessment of a Development Agency within a municipality.
However, in assessing a municipality, we cover the financial presentation of governmental activities and business-type activities. Governmental activities are invariably presented by use of fund accounting while business-type activities are presented using accrual accounting. As we have seen and will see, the process of analysis differs using statements prepared on a funds basis or prepared on an accrual basis.
Almost invariably, a Development Agency within a municipality will present the results of its operations using fund accounting. In Part II, we explore in much more depth how to use funds statements to properly assess a governmental division's or department's operations. Therefore, we would apply the same techniques to financial statements for a Development Agency whose operating results are presented separately using fund accounting.
Course overview: Fund Accounting and Municipality Analysis: Part I of II