GASB 84 fiduciary activities implementation reminders

Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement No. 84, Fiduciary Activities, is required to be implemented for years ending December 31, 2019 and after. Governments and auditors are finding this standard to be small but mighty – although the length is only 28 paragraphs, the changes have been significant for many governments.

Two of the areas of GASB 84 requiring the most analysis include:

1. The need to evaluate inclusion or exclusion of single employer pension plans (both defined benefit and defined contribution) within the government’s financial statements, and
2. What constitutes “administrative and direct financial involvement” when classifying activities between fiduciary and governmental or proprietary funds.

In addition, the requirement to present additions and deductions for all fiduciary funds on the statement of changes in fiduciary net position will be a major change in practice compared to past presentation of what were formerly known as “agency funds.”

Due to the many questions and challenges that have arisen from Statement No. 84, GASB recently issued an Implementation Guide which is very helpful in navigating some of the questions. GASB implementation guides are authoritative Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Therefore an important part of your preparation should include reviewing the implementation guide for considerations applicable to your situation.

As you finalize your GASB 84 implementation plans, consider the many resources available to you, including:

Baker Tilly insights and tools

• Understanding the new government reporting requirements for fiduciary activities
• Fiduciary activities: Changes affecting existing agency funds
• Understanding the new requirements for reporting Fiduciary Activities (GASB 84) on-demand webinar
• Fiduciary activities assessment tool

Governmental Accounting Standards Board resources

• GASB Statement No. 84, Fiduciary Activities
• GASB 84 Implementation Guide

For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly public sector specialists can help, contact our team.