September 9, 2011, letter commenting on IPSASB's "Conceptual Framework For General Purpose Financial Reporting By Public Sector Entities: Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities In Financial Statements" Exposure Draft

This letter provides the U.S. Government Accountability Office's (GAO) comments on the IPSASB Consultation Paper entitled "Conceptual Framework for General Purpose Financial Reporting By Public Sector Entities: Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities In Financial Statements (Phase 3)." The Conceptual Framework relating to the measurement of assets and liabilities is an important component of "The Conceptual Framework for General Purpose Financial Reporting by Public Sector Entities" that will establish and make explicit the concepts applied by the Board in developing International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) and other non-authoritative guidance. Overall, we are supportive of the framework in that it explores the measurement bases that may be adopted for elements that are recognized in the public sector general purpose financial statements. Such a framework can provide valuable guidance to current and successor Boards when establishing financial reporting standards.