Hybrid journal * Containing 5 Open Access article(s) in this issue * ISSN (Print) 1096-3367 - ISSN (Online) 1945-1814 Published by Emerald[362 journals]
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Andrea Garlatti, Silvia Iacuzzi, Rubens Pauluzzo, Elisabetta Pericolo Abstract: Digitalisation should increase participation by making it easier to engage citizens and other stakeholders, which in turn should reduce costs and increase service quality and accountability. Yet, evidence shows that it might create further divides, harming inclusiveness, and increasing burdens due to hidden costs not only for citizens but also for public officials. The article explores whether and how digitalisation influences public administration’s co-production efforts and what the key benefits and challenges are from the perspective of public officials. Following a literature overview, we selected a public “self-servicing” service that was recently digitalised in the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region in North-East Italy. We reviewed the relevant legislation and interviewed public service providers to map processes and identify gains and losses from their points of view. Results show that digitalisation can hinder public administration in its co-production efforts because the dysfunctional role played by digitalisation may increase burdens and negatively influence engagement for public officials, as it may have a negative impact on data accessibility, easiness of interaction, tailoring, and simplification. Findings contribute to the debate on the impact of digitalisation on public services, while policymakers can learn about how to foster co-production through digitalisation and how to mitigate the challenges and risks arising from it. The research focuses on public employees, their experiences, and perceptions on how the digitalisation of public services impacts efficiency and engagement, while much of the literature has so far explored mainly citizen engagement and participation through digital technologies. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-04-10 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2024-0186 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Fabiana Roberto, Giuseppe Grossi, James Guthrie, Giorgia Mattei Abstract: New Public Management (NPM) and New Public Financial Management (NPFM) have significantly influenced the transformation of several nation-states’ public sectors. This study examines the development of NPFM scholarship over the past 25 years, focusing on 3 foundational works that have substantially shaped this field (i.e. Olson et al., 1998, 2001; Guthrie et al., 1999). The study identifies key research themes within these foundational works and provides insights into the field’s emerging warnings and research directions. Our structured literature review collected 325 research articles from 1999 to 2024 from the Scopus database. These articles were chosen for their references to three key foundational works and were systematically analysed based on predefined NPFM themes. This was further enhanced by a traditional literature review of selected articles within each NPFM category, offering an analysis of NPFM scholarship and identifying potential future research paths. In examining the focus of the sampled articles among the five NPFM themes, we found that the majority have centred on the themes of financial reporting and performance measurement systems. Less attention has been given to auditing and budgetary themes. Various studies examined multiple NPFM themes simultaneously. We also provided valuable insights into both the challenges and opportunities for future scholarship. The study presents an extensive analysis of 25 years of NPFM research related to three foundational works, highlighting the interconnectedness of various developments. It identifies opportunities for advancing NPFM scholarship by suggesting further integration of interdisciplinary approaches to deal with emerging warnings. This study offers valuable insights into the development of NPFM scholarship, highlighting the need for further research that broadens the geographical scope, incorporates a more diverse range of disciplinary approaches, and addresses emerging warnings related to hybridisation, sustainability and digital transformation. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-04-04 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-01-2025-0021 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Michalis Bekiaris, Antonia Markogiannopoulou, Thekla Paraponti, Foteini Spanou Abstract: This study draws on collaborative public sector innovation to examine the adoption of digital innovations as enablers of public sector accounting reforms. The aim is to shed light on three dimensions of the collaborative process: (1) the actors of collaboration and their roles, (2) the governance and accountability of collaborative networks and (3) the success of the constructs of collaboration in relation to the timing of actors’ involvement and the adherence to the agreed timeframe. Our research combines the analysis of publicly available documents with written and oral interviews of senior officials of the Ministries of Finance of four central governments: Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Malta. The results identify the involvement of multiple actors across all stages of the innovation process. In addition, the findings show that the actors’ roles vary across stages. Regarding the governance of collaborative networks, we find evidence of shared governance in all cases and meta-governance strategies developed by public actors to improve coordination and safeguard accountability. The study adds to the existing literature on collaborative public sector innovation by providing insights into the changing roles and governance configurations across the different stages of the innovation process. This is the first study using collaborative public sector innovation to explore digital innovations supporting public-sector accounting reforms. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-03-20 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2024-0181 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Elaine Yi Lu, Robert Hines, Katherine Willoughby Abstract: How performance informs budgeting and budgets is contentious and unclear. Applying punctuated equilibrium theory, this research seeks to understand if performance information once placed on the media and macropolitical agendas can lead to long-term budgetary shifts. This research highlights how the accumulation of performance information punctuated the funding scheme and created a new equilibrium over time. This research uses mixed methods to study the impact of performance on Florida’s (USA) Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) over a 20-year period. First, we conduct a media review of 400 randomly sampled newspaper articles to characterize the media discourse around the DJJ from 1999 to 2007. Second, we use interrupted time series analysis to test if the accumulation of performance information triggered a shift in state funding from failing punitive programs to promising diversionary and prevention programs. The media review shows that reporting on the poor performance of punitive programs built up pressure for reform over the 1999–2007 period and attracted attention from political leaders. The interrupted time series shows that performance-informed reforms associated with the state’s Blueprint Commission rebalanced the DJJ’s policy and budgetary priorities to place less emphasis on punitive programs and more emphasis on diversionary and prevention programs. While prior studies have focused on the impact of performance on managerial and budgetary behaviors, we demonstrate that performance information, and media attention to it, leads to meaningful, if not immediate, budgetary change. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-03-18 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2024-0170 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Jens Heiling Abstract: This paper aims to examine the accounting and financial reporting treatment of intangible assets under International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in light of the digital transformation that takes place in the public sector. This paper presents an empirical analysis of financial reporting practices for intangible assets, focusing on selected public sector entities. The paper identifies challenges in the accounting for agile software development, for cloud computing as well as artificial intelligence (AI) systems and assesses whether the principles in IPSAS 31, Intangible Assets are sufficient to address the identified challenges. The paper concludes with a discussion of the findings and provides some recommendations not only for the IPSAS Board (IPSASB) but also for other accounting standard setters. Due to the limited number of entities subject to the empirical part of the paper, the study’s findings are subject to limitations regarding generalizability. This paper addresses only a subset of the current accounting issues related to the digital transformation of public sector entities. The study enhances the understanding of financial reporting for intangible assets by public sector entities in the digital age and offers insights that are of interest to accounting standard setters both in the public and the private sector. The digital transformation of public sector entities presents significant challenges for the accounting profession. A key contribution of this paper is to highlight some of the reporting and accounting issues currently under discussion, offering insights that may guide accounting standard setters in identifying areas where future guidance is needed. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-03-13 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2024-0177 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Rúben Silva Barros Abstract: New public management reforms have allocated a central place within public organisations to performance measurement. The balanced scorecard (BSC) is one of the models adapted and promoted for use in that setting. After more than 30 years of practice, this study reviews the leading literature published on the BSC for government entities and considers how it has been developed, the main insights gained and what could be investigated further. A literature review procedure inspired by a structured literature review process was conducted using the Scopus and Web of Science databases. Our research approach allowed us to obtain 39 articles published in 26 journals, showing a steady interest over the period from 1999 to 2022. These studies mainly adopt a case study approach with a practical orientation. With diverse situations reported, ranging from more beneficial situations to ones involving greater difficulties, this study calls for future researchers to investigate not only the implementation and use issues of the BSC but also its continuing use over time and the course that its application may take. Additionally, future researchers should not ignore the political and social issues concerning its implementation and use. We also observe that qualitative approaches are likely to remain valuable research designs for pursuing our research suggestions. This study offers a comprehensive review of the use of the BSC for government entities, connecting the results and considerations to further research with reflections on NPM. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-02-11 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-10-2022-0162 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Anatoli Bourmistrov, Toomas Haldma, Kirsi-Mari Kallio, Inger Johanne Pettersen, Matti Skoog Abstract: The purpose of this article is to assess the continuing relevance of Olson et al.’s (1998) four primary concerns regarding the future development of New Public Financial Management (NPFM) in public service organizations. A particular focus is on understanding changes in the formal systems governing the performance management of universities across different “soft-NPFM” national contexts as well as the identification of successful strategies to mediate those four concerns. Changes in the formal systems governing the performance management of universities in three European countries – Estonia, Finland and Norway – are reviewed in their historical contexts. Methodologically, this article is based on a content-driven analysis of documents, reports and scientific literature, supplemented by the collective memory of the co-authors. “Warnings” have materialized quite differently in the three countries due to unique “national filters.” These filters are represented by different understandings of how universities are defined in terms of their governance and ownership, such as whether the universities are agents of the state or independent accounting entities with their own legal rights. These “national filters” seem to affect how NPFM is translated into the formal systems governing the performance management of universities. This article contributes to the literature by examining how some countries and their governments manage to achieve “selective complementarity” of different reforms and trends. This complementarity helps to avoid the “dysfunctional effects” and “extremes” of NPFM. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-01-23 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-11-2023-0208 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Paola Canestrini, Giovanna Galizzi, Benedetta Siboni Abstract: This study aims to explore the facilitating and hindering conditions that interact in the implementation of a gender-responsive budgeting (GRB) process for incorporating a gender perspective into the accounting system to improve gender equality (GE) in the health sector. A case study approach applying multi-qualitative methods was adopted to analyse the GRB initiative implemented jointly by three Italian health organisations. Hindering and facilitating conditions and managing types were identified through the lens of the public value (PV) strategic triangle of Moore (1995) and a crystallisation perspective. The GRB initiative studied contributes to PV creation by considering the alignment of the three dimensions of Moore’s PV strategic triangle. The centrality of political and governance commitment to legitimise the GRB process emerges. Moreover, the operational capacity of organisations is supported by civil servants’ engagement. The GRB initiative has steered the three organisations towards achieving GE goals. Consequently, their strategies and programmes align with collective interests, fostering trust institutionally and within the community. However, some resistance to introducing a new accounting practice emerged, highlighting how GRB requires a high level of commitment from both governance and civil servants to contribute to the improvement of GE and, thus, PV creation. This research adds to the accounting literature, providing an original contribution to GRB as a process for PV creation within the health sector. It also discusses the conditions favouring and hindering the implementation of a GRB process. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-04-11 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-07-2023-0130 Issue No:Vol. 37, No. 6 (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Mattias Haraldsson Abstract: This paper aims to explore Swedish municipalities’ adoption of politically decided goals and targets, within the budget document, that are formulated for the accounting unit of the municipal group. A regression analysis of the adoption of financial and non-financial performance measurement by 289 Swedish municipalities was performed, including eight independent variables and several control variables. Of the municipalities, 26% adopted financial and 13% non-financial goals and targets in their 2021 budgets. The former choice appears to be driven by functional rationality, while the latter is driven by institutional and political incentives. The low adoption level of performance measurement implies that political group-level management has not yet adapted to new organisational conditions. To enhance political governance and accountability, controllers should assist politicians in incorporating municipal group goals into the budget. Not least, more attention should be given to non-financial perspectives, as they better support strategy implementation and better promote comprehensive accountability to citizens and stakeholders. A further implication for policymakers is that when designing future legal financial and non-financial requirements for municipalities, it is important to define those at the municipal group level. This study empirically and theoretically contributes to previous research on the adoption of performance measurement as it is the first study to explore the adoption pattern of financial and non-financial performance measurement at the municipal group level. This study further contributes theoretically by highlighting the importance of distinguishing between the adoption of financial and non-financial goals and targets, as the analysis reveals that financial and non-financial performance measures are adopted due to different rationales. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2025-02-21 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-06-2024-0092 Issue No:Vol. 37, No. 6 (2025)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Mark Christensen, Sandra Cohen, Sheila Ellwood, Susan Newberry, Bradley Potter Abstract: This paper aims to identify thematic issues in public sector accrual accounting and financial reporting that learn from the past and provide lessons for the future by reflecting on the warnings in Olson et al.’s seminal 1998 book Global Warning. Methodologically, this paper takes insights developed by an experienced pool of public sector accounting scholars and refines them via frames of thinking such as accountability, democracy, decision-making and governance. The discussion follows a medical analogy of an organ transplant in which the public sector was diagnosed as an ailing patient and a for-profit accounting system (business accrual accounting and reporting) has been transplanted to it as a cure. We discuss the relation of accrual accounting as a tool of neoliberal policies in the health sector (diagnosis ailment and organ transplant), technical issues regarding accrual accounting and those implementing it (technology of the transplanted organ) and the effects of that accounting on the public sector (the progress of the patient after the transplant). From the topics and examples addressed, we conclude that the transplantation of business accounting and reporting to the public sector carries wider implications for large-scale accounting change and requires vigilance. Transplanting to new fields of accounting technology that is itself undergoing constant change may be more problematic and challenging than previously recognized. Critical challenge and assessment of whether Global Warning’s concerns are still valid today and whether the public sector faces new “warnings” regarding its accounting and reporting. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-12-23 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-10-2023-0195 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Robert J. Eger III, Judith M. Hermis Abstract: The paper examines whether special purpose governments follow the pecking order model when raising capital, replacing firm equity in the original model with local intergovernmental revenues. Special purpose governments are a relatively underexamined component of state and local governments, and their capital structure choices have important implications for America’s aggregate fiscal health. This paper seeks to illuminate special purpose governments’ choices among available forms of capital. To address our research inquiry regarding whether special-purpose governments adhere to the pecking order theory, we narrow our focus to a specific group of transit entities. Our investigation utilizes data sourced from two distinct repositories: the United States Census of Governments and the National Transit Database. To facilitate integration of these disparate datasets, we establish a correspondence between them using the Federal Information Processing Standard and the transit identification number. Initially, our analysis employs maximum likelihood estimation, comparing these estimates to those generated by a naïve model. Subsequently, we derive parameter estimates through the application of a bivariate probit model. The paper supports the pecking order hypothesis where internal funds are consumed first, debt is consumed next and IGR is consumed last. The results are robust and are not influenced by simultaneity bias. The paper uses transit special purpose governments as the special purpose government of interest. These transit special purpose governments have high fixed costs that may inform their capital structure decisions relative to non-transit special purpose governments. Additionally, transit special purpose governments often have a profit-maximizing objective that may not uniformly apply to other special purpose governments, such as school districts, who lack such an incentive. Our research should grab the attention of state and local politicians, voters, policy experts and scholars. Special-purpose governments, a key part of our governmental system, are on the rise. Understanding them better can guide decision-making on how to allocate resources, set policies and plan strategically. This knowledge boosts financial reporting quality, transparency, accountability and public confidence. Journalists can leverage our findings to ensure accurate and thorough reporting, fostering accountability and trust. Additionally, debt markets and analysts can factor this information into their risk assessments. The paper enhances our understanding of how special purpose governments interact with existing models of corporate finance when making capital structure decisions. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-10-24 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2023-0164 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Umesh Sharma, Amanpreet Kaur Abstract: This paper aims to present an overview of the development of the public value accounting approach and its application to public sector accountability in New Zealand. The study uses the public value framework to demonstrate the outcome-related planning and control mechanisms that are put in place in the public sector. The paper draws from archival research using a case study of the Ministry of Pacific Peoples. The public value accounting-based calculative practices are on the rise within the New Zealand public sector. New Zealand’s public sector is oriented towards a public value budget. The study is limited through the use of secondary data and the use of content analysis methodology. The research enables policymakers to fund initiatives that enhance the well-being of the community. Public value can be created as a joint effort between citizens and government as evident from the case study. By looking at the totality of the impact of government through public value creation can help to improve policy decisions. Government policymakers need to emphasise on those public value creation that has an enormous positive impact on the citizens. This will also help to improve the relationship between government and citizens through increased trust in the government by citizens. The paper contributes to the public value research which has received relatively less attention in the literature. Public value accounting is a research field that is yet to achieve a significant level of attention. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-09-30 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-09-2023-0169 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Jodie Moll, Soon Yong Ang, Chamara Kuruppu, Pawan Adhikari Abstract: This paper examines the Australian and New Zealand government’s wellbeing budget reforms. The paper describes the development of wellbeing budgeting in Australia and New Zealand based on an analysis of official websites, documents and media sources. Both governments have experienced challenges identifying measures representing different areas of wellbeing and recognising the connections between the measures applied. They have found it difficult to access reliable data. The development of wellbeing budgeting also raises questions about participation, data reporting, and presentation, which can impact its efficacy. The paper outlines practical challenges governments face in creating and using wellbeing budgets. It proposes a future research agenda to deepen our understanding of these issues and their social and economic implications. The scope of the study is limited to publicly available documents. This is one of the few studies investigating wellbeing budgeting, which has evolved as an important tool for public governance. Therefore, the study’s findings may draw substantial interest and attention from practitioners, researchers and government policymakers wanting to integrate these reforms into their governance machinery. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-09-02 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-11-2023-0197 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Enrico Bracci, Cemil Eren Fırtın, Gustaf Kastberg Weichselberger Abstract: This essay focuses on an argument that challenges the notion of market reform as a desirable idea. It examines how market requirements, accounting practices, political intervention and organizational conditions interact and create conflicts in the implementation of market reform. In our case study, we aim to elucidate the detrimental effects of expanding pricing mechanisms into areas typically untouched. The essay adopts a critical perspective toward the marketization in the public sector organizations based on the authors' previous studies and observations of the reforms in Swedish schools over the last 30 years. The case is conceptualized within Callon’s framework of the sociology of worth. The paper provides an example of market dynamics introduced without the presence of pricing and qualification mechanisms, resulting in a trial-and-error situation. In this context, we document and problematize a trend toward marketization that has had negative consequences for Swedish schools. In doing so, the paper shows how market requirements, accounting practices, political interventions and organizational conditions interact and create conflicts during the implementation of market reforms. The case shows the emergence of a new economic entity and its underlying rationale, the quantification/pricing mechanism, with a special emphasis on the role of accounting and the repercussions on subjectivities as values shift. This paper follows up on the New Public Financial Management (NPFM) global warning debate on the emergence of pricing/charging mechanisms in public services. It provides a critical overview of the diffusion and relevance of accounting evaluation processes to sustain continuous reforms, despite claimed criticisms, limitations and (un)intended consequences. The paper also provides some reflections on new avenues for further research and some possible ways out for accounting studies. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-05-23 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-10-2023-0194 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Carolyn J. Cordery, David Hay Abstract: New public management (NPM) has transformed the public sector auditing context, although in quite different ways. Further, investigations into NPM’s impact on public sector auditors and audit institutions have been largely unconnected, with the exception of the critical examination of performance audits. We investigate the question of how public sector auditors’ roles and activities have changed as a result of NPM and later reforms. We examine and synthesise public sector audit research examining reforms since the year 2000. The research presented considers changes to external and internal public sector audits as well as the development of public sector audit institutions – known as supreme audit institutions (SAIs). Considerable changes have occurred. Many were influenced by NPM, but others have evolved from the eco-system of accounting, auditing and public sector management. External auditors have responded to an increase in demand for accountability. Additional management and governance techniques have been introduced from the private sector, such as internal auditing and audit committees. NPM has also led to conflicting trends, particularly when governments introduced competition to public sector auditing by contracting out but then chose to centralise to improve accountability. There is also greater international influence now through bodies like the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) and similar regional bodies. NPM reforms and the eco-system have impacted public sector auditing. Sustainability reporting is emerging as an area requiring more auditing attention; auditors also need to continue to develop better ways to communicate with citizens. Further, research into auditing in non-Western nations and emerging technologies is also required, especially where it provides learnings around more valuable audit practices. Empirical evidence is required of the strengths and weaknesses of SAIs’ structural variety. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-03-05 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-07-2023-0124 Issue No:Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print (2024)
Please help us test our new pre-print finding feature by giving the pre-print link a rating. A 5 star rating indicates the linked pre-print has the exact same content as the published article.
Authors:Gioacchino Benfante, Alessandro Casali, Isabella Mozzoni, Marco Ferretti Abstract: This research aims to contribute to the ongoing debate on the prospective advantages of implementing accrual accounting in countries where such a transition is underway, with a focus on Italian municipalities. The research seeks to ascertain the requisite conditions, in public sector accounting mangers’ perception, for a useful transition from modified cash accounting to full accrual accounting within the Italian context. The methodology adopted is Qualitative Comparative Analysis, which involves conducting a survey through semi-structured interviews with accounting managers in municipal accounting departments. The sample is drawn from municipalities in the Emilia-Romagna region with populations exceeding 15,000 inhabitants. The study shows that some stakeholders have a tangible demand for financial statement information. They believe that accrual accounting statements provide accurate insights into municipal financial health and that these statements are comparable across municipalities. All these factors together constitute sufficient conditions for considering useful the implementation of accrual accounting in local governments, in the opinion of public sector accounting managers. This paper contextualises the broader international debate on transitioning to full accrual accounting in the New Institutional Sociology framework. The Qualitative Comparative Analysis is an underutilised methodology within the field of public sector accounting, and the public sector accounting managers’ point of view is scarcely investigated in literature. Citation: Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management PubDate: 2024-12-06 DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-02-2024-0016 Issue No:Vol. 37, No. 6 (2024)