One of the most important parts of any government agency is the accounting department. Whether on the federal, state, county, municipal or special-purpose level, allocating resources to programs through compartmentalizing activities into funds is crucial to any type of government machine.
The online Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Accounting program at Southeastern Oklahoma State University prepares students for many career options in the governmental accounting field by teaching the fundamentals of in-demand financial management skills.
One of the six electives in the curriculum, the Governmental Accounting course specifically emphasizes the standards and basics of providing services, including fund accounting, for government agencies on the state and local levels and for non-profit organizations. This allows students to tailor their degrees to their career goals.
The Forensic Accounting course helps students understand the major elements of business and accounting financial fraud as well as techniques to address financial statement misrepresentation, financial corruption and other financial crimes.
Local Versus Federal
On the local level, one job duty for government accountants is investigating white-collar crime. They also manage local revenues, perform audits and comply with local laws and regulations specific to the state and city they serve.
Meanwhile, careers with the federal government include working for the General Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Internal Revenue Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
Federal government accounting jobs include performing agency audits and investigating white-collar crime, along with testifying before legislative committees about tax legislation or audits on a higher level than state and local.
So, the role of any government accountant is critical to maintaining law and order and keeping the entity running smoothly from a financial standpoint. Therefore, knowing the ins and outs of governmental accounting is essential to success for anybody in the field.
Setting the Standards
Established in 1984, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) sets and updates the accounting and financial reporting standards in order to meet the specific needs of state and local government agencies.
The GASB is an independent organization in the private sector made up of seven diverse board members. It is overseen and funded by the non-profit Financial Accounting Foundation, which also runs the Financial Accounting Standards Board.
Along with state and local governments, state boards of accountancy and the American Institute of CPAs follow GASB standards. Funding for the GASB is primarily through accounting support fees paid by municipal bond brokers and traders.
The GASB strives to provide government financial data that is reliable, transparent and comparable by following due process activities while updating standards that include public participation. Those activities are:
- A Governmental Accounting Standards Advisory Council advisory task force input
- The publication of a discussion document that the public can comment on
- An Exposure Draft of proposed standards distributed to the public and open for comment
- A review of existing literature on related subjects
- Holding public hearings and forums on due process documents
With the GASB, governmental accounting professionals on the state and local levels always know the standards and guidelines they must follow.
The high-demand career field of anti-fraud professionals, which includes governmental accountants, includes competitive compensation — especially for Certified Fraud Examiners (CFE) accountants. In North America, the total salary for a CFE professional in the field in 2022 was $106,000. That number — which includes base pay, commissions, bonuses and profit-sharing — is the highest in the world. The salary in the Pacific region of the United States is $120,000.
On average, the total for additional compensation is 10.9% higher with a bachelor’s degree, which most companies require to work in the governmental accounting field.
Earning a BBA in Accounting from Southeastern Oklahoma State University is a good way to fulfill that requirement and acquire the skill set and knowledge to work in the field.
Learn more about Southeastern’s online BBA in Accounting program.