The Quest for a Primary EPSAS Purpose – Insights from Literature and Conceptual Frameworks

Mann, Bianca; Lorson, Peter; Oulasvirta, Lasse; Haustein, Ellen

doi:10.1080/17449480.2019.1632467

Cited by 24 publications

(28 citation statements)

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“…This paper addressed recent calls for academic research on accrual-based public sector accounting in the EU (European Commission, 2016) and adds to the growing body of literature on EPSAS (e.g. Caruana et al , 2019; Jorge et al , 2019; Mann et al , 2019). As presented in the last two sections, the study of responses to the Eurostat consultation indicated a generally positive view on IPSAS, although the responsible government authorities showed more skeptical attitudes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More recently, Eurostat has offered financial support to national standard setters, training institutes and other target groups for activities supporting EPSAS implementation. In parallel, the EPSAS working group at Eurostat is continuously developing various reporting standards and also a conceptual framework (Mann et al , 2019). Additionally, three smaller expert groups (cells) were established, dealing with first-time implementation, governance issues and principles.…”

Section: Conceptual Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

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IPSAS for European Union member states as starting points for EPSAS

Polzer

Reichard

2019

IJPSM

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Purpose The European Commission is pursuing an initiative to establish European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS) as a common mandatory set of rules for financial reporting of all member states of the European Union (EU). As a basis for developing EPSAS, the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) are being used. The purpose of this paper is to structure and analyze the discussion around EPSAS, with particular emphasis on the arguments that were brought forward by governments and other stakeholders of various EU countries regarding the suitability of IPSAS. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on several schools of thought in new institutional theory, how the prevailing institutional contexts in countries influence the debates is explored. Empirically, this research investigates the responses to a consultation on the suitability of IPSAS for EU member states and takes a closer look, via document analysis, at France and Germany as two critical cases. Findings It is found that, first, the majority of arguments from respondents are framed in a rational choice way. Second, skeptics of IPSAS tend to make arguments rather from positions closer to historical and/or sociological institutionalism. Research limitations/implications The paper illustrates that while technical matters around EPSAS seem solvable, political, historical and cultural differences go deeper, and need to be addressed by change agents. Regarding limitations of the research, first, the analysis concentrates on financial reporting and does not deal with the implications for more reliable and comparable national accounts in the context of the European System of Accounts (ESA, 2010). Second, it is focused on debates in the context of the EPSAS proposal, and there is a need for an evaluation after the changes have gone live. Originality/value The study looks at a text genre that has so far received less attention in public sector accounting research: responses to consultations. The paper contributes to the literature by showing how institutional contexts matter in settings characterized by contestation of reform contents.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Conceptual Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

IPSAS for European Union member states as starting points for EPSAS

Polzer

Reichard

2019

IJPSM

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“…In order to make public sector accounting information comparable, the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) were developed but even though they have been available more than two decades, they are only partially adopted in some countries. On the other hand, the European Commission (EC) has taken serious steps by establishing harmonized public sector accounting standards for EU member countries (Mann et al, 2019). Since the IPSAS have been criticized for being too similar to the accounting standards for the private sector, the EC initiated the development of the European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS).…”

Section: Public Sector Accounting and The Use Of Accounting Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public sector cost accounting and information usefulness in decision-making

Rogošić

2021

pse

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“…A growing literature is discussing accounting objectives (e.g. Broadbent and Guthrie, 2008; Nowak et al , 2014; Glöckner, 2015; Mann et al , 2019) and the debate is still ongoing.…”

Section: The Quest For Users’ Needs In Public Sector Budgeting and Reportingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The quest for users’ needs in public sector budgeting and reporting

Haustein

Lorson

Caperchione

et al. 2019

JPBAFM

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The quest for users' needs in public sector budgeting and reporting Public financial management (PFM) encompasses a comprehensive set of diverse activities regarding budget preparation and execution, control, accounting, reporting, monitoring and evaluation (Allen et al., 2004). These activities produce plenty of data for a relatively broad range of users with diverse needs. Despite an upsurge of interest in PFM research, a common critique refers to the absence of a theoretical background that serves in framing accounting and reporting principles and financial management activities in the public sector (Pallot, 1992; Mayston, 1992; Steccolini, 2016). According to Jones and Pendlebury (2000, p. 126), public sector accounting has been based on "hypothesised users and hypothesised needs". Doubts have been raised, whether a "substantial number of users" even exists (Jones and Pendlebury, 2000, p. 138). This brings the idea of General Purpose Financial Statements ad absurdum. The requirement to define users and their needs leaves both researchers and standard setters with numerous challenges regarding the identification of users, the classification of their needs and the resolution of user needs' conflicts. Despite existing analytical contributions on users and their needs (e.g.

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The Quest for a Primary EPSAS Purpose – Insights from Literature and Conceptual Frameworks

Cited by 24 publications

References 50 publications

IPSAS for European Union member states as starting points for EPSAS

IPSAS for European Union member states as starting points for EPSAS

Public sector cost accounting and information usefulness in decision-making

The quest for users’ needs in public sector budgeting and reporting

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