This summary of decisions of the Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) has been prepared for information purposes only. Decisions reported are tentative and reflect only the current status of discussions on projects, which might change after further deliberations by PSAB. Decisions to publish exposure draft and Handbook material are final only after a formal ballot process. For more information, please contact Michael Puskaric, Director at PSAB at [email protected].
Public Sector Accounting Discussion Group
PSAB received an update on the Public Sector Accounting Discussion Group’s meeting held on November 10, 2022, and a summary of the discussion. The Group will post the meeting report on its webpage in early January 2023.
2022-2023 Annual Improvements
PSAB approved the proposals which were recommended as part of the 2022-2023 Annual Improvements Exposure Draft in August 2022, with two exceptions:
- Terminology changes to replace “government” with “public sector entity” were not approved for Section PS 3100, Restricted Assets and Revenues, because of complexities related to internally restricted entities that warrant further consideration in a future project.
- PSAB did not approve updating the designation of existing CPA Canada Public Sector Accounting (PSA) Handbook appendices to respond to respondents’ requests for clarity about the status of each appendix as a source of GAAP, as described in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, paragraph PS 1150.03(d). The Board concluded that clarifying the status of some application guidance appendices within GAAP went beyond the definition of an annual improvement and requires consideration in a future project.
PSAB also agreed to publish the approved annual improvements in the PSA Handbook in two phases.
- In April 2023, the PSA Handbook release will allow early adoption of Section PS 3160, Public Private Partnerships, and clarify the application of PSG-8, Purchased Intangibles, to inter-entity transactions. The effective date of these is April 1, 2023.
- The remainder of the annual improvements, excluding the two exceptions noted, will be published in a PSA Handbook release later in 2023, with an effective date of the first day of the month published.
This approach will allow for the coordination of the remaining annual improvements with the expected publication of consequential amendments related to the new reporting model, Section PS 1202, Financial Statement Presentation, in fall 2023.
Financial Statement Presentation Standard (“Reporting Model”)
PSAB received a significant amount of stakeholder feedback on the Exposure Draft “Financial Statement Presentation, Proposed Section PS 1202.” At this meeting, the Board reviewed the feedback related to:
- the general presentation principles, including going concern; and
- the budget requirements.
PSAB also reviewed the feedback received on the Exposure Draft “Consequential Amendments Arising from the Financial Statement Presentation Standard, Proposed Section PS 1202.”
PSAB will continue to review an analysis of the feedback related to other aspects of the proposed standard at its January 2023 meeting.
Government Not-for-Profit (GNFP) Strategy
As part of the GNFP Strategy decision and Implementation Plan, PSAB approved the GNFP Capital Assets project proposal.
This project will focus on proposing amendments to Section PS 3150, Tangible Capital Assets, as a result of reviewing Section PS 4230, Capital Assets Held by Not-for-Profit Organizations, and Section PS 4240, Collections Held by Not-for-Profit Organizations.
The project will follow PSAB’s due process and the Board will consult stakeholders on all proposed changes before amendments are made to the PSA Handbook. Stakeholder feedback will be sought throughout the consultation period.