The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level

Fuchs, Sandro; Bergmann, Andreas; Brusca, Isabel

Publication type:	Conference paper
Type of review:	Not specified
Title:	The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level
Authors:	Fuchs, Sandro Bergmann, Andreas Brusca, Isabel
Conference details:	15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015
Issue Date:	2015
Language:	English
Subjects:	Impact of accounting reform; IPSAS; Public sector accounting
Subject (DDC):	657: Accounting
Abstract:	Purpose: While corporate research has investigated the economic consequences of IFRS adoption, there is only limited evidence on the impact of modern accrual accounting systems (MAAS) in the public sector context. To fill this gap, we examine the economic effects of MAAS implementation on Swiss state level, taking into account different types and magnitudes of reforms. Design/methodology/approach: Based on public transition reports, we manually compile a database representing the full sample of all 26 Swiss cantons. The assessment framework allows us to eliminate time effects giving rise to counterfactual evidence, since transition reports include original and restated values for the same reporting period. We use Wilcoxon signed-rank test and Pearson correlation analysis to draw our main findings. Findings: We find significant economic impact resulting from MAAS implementation, therefore containing decision-relevant information for internal and external stakeholders. Strong impact correlations between economic effects and magnitudes of accounting reforms can be found, with IPSAS having the largest economic consequences. Key finding is, that the implementation of MAAS might lead to a higher valued economic substance with assets increasing more than liabilities. This, in turn, has an direct impact on equity numbers and other key financial indicators. Originality/value: To our best knowledge this is the first paper that investigates the impact of MAAS implementation. Therefore, it complements the existing public financial management literature and sets the base for further research in this area.
URI:	https://digitalcollection.zhaw.ch/handle/11475/14878
Fulltext version:	Published version
License (according to publishing contract):	Licence according to publishing contract
Departement:	School of Management and Law
Organisational Unit:	Institute of Public Management (IVM)
Appears in collections:	Publikationen School of Management and Law

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Fuchs, S., Bergmann, A., & Brusca, I. (2015). The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level. 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015.

Fuchs, S., Bergmann, A. and Brusca, I. (2015) ‘The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level’, in 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015.

S. Fuchs, A. Bergmann, and I. Brusca, “The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level,” in 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015, 2015.

FUCHS, Sandro, Andreas BERGMANN und Isabel BRUSCA, 2015. The financial impact of public sector accrual accounting reforms and its implications : evidence from swiss state level. In: 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015. Conference paper. 2015

Fuchs, Sandro, Andreas Bergmann, and Isabel Brusca. 2015. “The Financial Impact of Public Sector Accrual Accounting Reforms and Its Implications : Evidence from Swiss State Level.” Conference paper. In 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015.

Fuchs, Sandro, et al. “The Financial Impact of Public Sector Accrual Accounting Reforms and Its Implications : Evidence from Swiss State Level.” 15th Biennial CIGAR Conference 2015, Valletta, 4-5 June 2015, 2015.