Accounting Policy Manual

Content Under Review

The content on this page is under review. While we work to provide the latest updates, all posted policies should be considered in effect. Significant policy changes will be communicated via email.

Accounting Policy Manual Table of Contents

The Accounting Policy Manual includes high-level policies and procedures to ensure that financial activity is recorded accurately and consistently across organizations, so that government-wide financial statements will comply with authoritative Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) and legislative standards. Basic guidance on accounting requirements, including journal entry examples, is included in these documents. Accounting manual topics apply to all State of Georgia accounting organizations regardless of their accounting systems.

Refer to the State Reporting Structure and Chart of Accounts page for value listings within the chart structure and guidance on using the various accounting fields. The structure page also includes account definitions at the State Chart of Accounts (SCOA) level. The SCOA applies to all organizations in the State reporting entity regardless of their accounting systems. State organizations that do not use the prescribed SCOA values must be able to provide a mapping cross-reference to their local charts for purposes of year-end statewide reporting.

CATEGORY 1 - GENERAL GUIDELINES

Section	Manual	Effective Date	Revision Date
Accounting Manual Introduction	State of Georgia Accounting Policy Structure	06/30/2009	07/01/2022
	Fiscal Management Objectives	06/30/2009	07/01/2022
	Management Responsibilities	06/30/2009	07/01/2022
	GAAP Hierarchy & Link to GASB	06/30/2016	07/01/2022
	Laws and Regulations	07/01/1999	07/01/2022
	Glossary	07/01/2009	07/01/2022

CATEGORY 2 -FINANCIAL REPORTING

Section	Manual	Effective Date	Revision Date
	Materiality	07/01/2009	06/30/2011
Basis of Accounting and Reporting	Overview	06/30/2009	06/30/2011
	Legal Level of Budgetary Control	Not Available	Not Available
	Elements of Financial Statements	07/01/2015	07/01/2015
Chart of Accounts (COA)	Structure Overview	07/01/2009	04/30/2010
	Fund Source Identifiers	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Control/Clearing Accounts - Balancing Requirements	06/30/2012	03/01/2016

CATEGORY 3 - CLOSING PROCEDURES

Section	Manual	Effective Date	Revision Date
Checklists	Monthly Reporting and Analysis Checklist	Not Available
	Fiscal Year-End Cutoff and Analysis Checklist	Not Available
	Documentation Requirements	05/31/2011	05/31/2011

CATEGORY 4 - FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING AND REPORTING POLICIES & PROCEDURES

Section	Manual	Effective Date	Revision Date
Inflows of Resources	Revenues & Receivables Unearned Revenues and Unavailable Revenues - General	07/01/2015	06/22/2017
	Uncollectible Accounts and Write-Offs	07/01/2011	07/01/2011
	Other Financing Sources	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Prior Year Carry-Over (Accounting)	07/01/2008	07/01/2017
	Revenues - Grants and Other Financial Assistance Policy	03/25/2016	03/25/2016
Outflows of Resources	Accounting for Vendor Adjustment Credits	06/30/2013	04/05/2013
	Payments to Board Members	07/01/1999	10/01/2024
	Other Financing Uses	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Expenditures/Expenses, Prepaid Items, Payables and Deferred Outflows – General	06/22/2017	06/22/2017
Assets and Deferred Outflows of Resources	Cash, Cash Equivalents and Investments	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Inventories	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Prepaid Assets and Deferred Charges	07/01/1999	07/01/2004
	Deposits and Investments	Not Available
Liabilities and Deferred Inflows of Resources	Claims, Judgments, and Accounting for Contingencies	07/01/2015	07/01/2015
	Pollution Remediation Obligations	06/30/2009	06/30/2009
Employee Benefits	Compensated Absences	07/01/2010	02/28/2011
	Deferred Compensation (IRC 457 Plans)	07/01/2010	02/28/2011
	Pension Benefits	Not Available
	Other Postemployment Benefits	Not Available
Capital Assets	Capital Assets - General	07/01/2010	10/01/2024
	Construction in Progress	07/01/2011	06/30/2011
	Asset Transfers and Other Disposals	07/01/2010	06/30/2011
	Impairments	07/01/2010	06/30/2011
	Intangibles - General	07/01/2009	06/30/2011
	Internally Generated Computer Software	07/01/2009	06/30/2011
Leases and Subscription Based Information Technology Agreements	Lease - Lessee and Lessor Accounting	07/01/2021	06/30/2023
	Subscription Based Information Technology Agreements (SBITAs)	07/01/2021	06/30/2023
Debt and Related Items	Interest, Notes, Bonds Payable/Bond Premiums and Discounts	07/01/1999	09/16/2019
	Derivative Instruments	07/01/2009	04/11/2012
Equity	Equity Policy	03/25/2016	03/25/2016
Special Accounting Transactions	Accounting Changes	Not Available
	Prior Period Adjustments	Not Available
	Extraordinary and Special Items	Not Available
	Subsequent Events	Not Available
	Tax Abatements	July 1, 2016	July 1, 2021