Section 10 of the New York State General Municipal Law was amended in 2005 to authorize an additional option for local governments to secure deposits and temporary investment of public funds. Under the new law, local governments have the option to accept as security a pledge of a pro rata portion of a "pool" of eligible securities. Local governments that choose to utilize the new pooled collateral option must take necessary steps to ensure that their deposits and investment are properly secure.

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide information to local governments and school districts on the financial statement reporting requirements for tax abatements, as required by Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement No. 77, Tax Abatement Disclosures. This bulletin also identifies several programs in New York that meet GASB’s tax abatement definition.

This bulletin provides information regarding the accounting treatment for other post-employment benefits (OPEB) and guidance on how local governments and school districts can comply with the new standards in the Annual Update Document (AUD) and ST-3. | GASB 75 & OPEB Frequently Asked Questions

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide updated account code guidance for school districts recording contributions to the New York State and Local Employee Retirement System (ERS) and to the New York State Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS).

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide updated information regarding pension accounting treatment and guidance on how our local governments and school districts can comply with the new requirements, including compliance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the Annual Update Document (AUD) and ST-3.
Updated March 2020 (Originally Issued May 2015)

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide guidance on identifying fiduciary activities for accounting and financial reporting purposes and how local governments and school districts will need to account for and report these activities in the Annual Update Document (AUD) and the ST-3. | GASB Statement 84 Implementation Guidance Frequently Asked Questions
Updated November 2020 (Originally Issued March 2020)

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide updated guidance to counties on accounting for Medicaid expenditures. This bulletin supersedes our November 2005 accounting bulletin entitled Medicaid Cap Update.

Read the Frequently Asked Questions on GASB 75 & OPEB. | Accounting and Financial Reporting for Other Postemployment Benefits as Required by GASB Statement 75

Local officials are statutorily required to file certain financial reports annually with the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC). While most local governments file within required timeframes, some do not. A relatively small number of local governments are severely delinquent—failing to file for three or more years—which calls into question the financial standing of the locality as well as the effectiveness of the management of the local government in general.

The following report highlights the very difficult fiscal environment under which local officials are expected to fulfill their obligations to the people they serve, as well as outlining the significant steps OSC is taking to assist in these efforts. | NYS Local Government Interactive Data