LOCAL AUTHORITY FINANCES

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28988, 1 September 1959, Page 20

LOCAL AUTHORITY FINANCES

Report, Consolidated Account Urged

(Neto Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 30. The production of a consolidated account and an annual report with the accounts were innovations which local authorities’ treasurers could adopt with advantage, said Mr C. L. Bishop, secretary of the Municipal Association, at the Victoria University accountancy seminar.

Speaking in a symposium on faults and weaknesses in special fields of accounting, Mr Bishop said local authority accounting did not provide great scope for initiative because legislation controlled the accounting structure. But there was some scope for the alert and progressive accountant. The law stipulated only minimum requirements and did not fix a maximum.

The consolidated account was one direction in which the keen accountant could advance. The One Tree Hill Borough Council provided an example, he added. The totals in its general account were gathered into one account which, with notes on the borough’s operations for the year, was sent out with the rate demands. It was an excellent document although it could be misleading to ratepayers, who might conclude that a total credit balance was available to offset the revenue requirements of the following year, whereas components of the total were not available for the purpose. The Associated Chambers of Commerce had taken up the question of a detailed annual report being made with a local authority’s annual accounts to provide a better understanding of them.

It was an excellent idea, and although there would be a little difficulty with the larger authorities, it could be overcome. If such a report were concise and clear it would be a valuable aid to understanding the authority’s finances.