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More than Just a Watchdog
The terms of the three living comptrollers general span the period from 1966 to 1999. During those 33 years of leadership, much has happened that affected the public accounting profession-among it the first set of yellow book government auditing standards. the Single Audit Act of 1984, examination of auditor performance at failed savings and loan organizations, and, most recently, the audit of the consolidated government-- wide financial statements.
The CPA Journal asked the three CGs to explain the GAO's contributions to the profession and to explore how the GAO can continue to help maintain a healthy, viable profession.
As chief executive officer of the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO), when the comptroller general (CG) speaks, Congress listens. Presidential appointment to a 15-year, nonrenewable term gives the CG a degree of independence and credibility that is among the highest of all government officials. The GAO started out primarily as Congress's watchdog, monitoring the spending of the executive department and agencies. In its earliest days, it examined every voucher the executive agencies submitted for payment. After the backlog reached 35 million vouchers at the end of World War II, the GAO began auditing programs rather than checking individual documents.
The Budget and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950 moved the GAO in the direction of establishing standards for Federal programs and looking into their effectiveness. A budget act of 1974 further changed the work of the GAO by making it responsible for providing information to congressional committees.
Establishing standards and responding to congressional committees has brought the GAO and the comptroller general into direct contact with the CPA profession. The GAO's 1996 report, The Accounting Profession: Major Issues, Progress and Concerns, is an in-depth analysis of the profession's response to criticism regarding its primary role of providing integrity to financial reporting.
The three living comptrollers general are Elmer B. Staats, who served from 1966 to 1981; Charles A. Bowsher, who served from 1981 to 1996; and David M. Walker, who was appointed in 1998.
As part of its Millennium Series, The CPA Journal asked these three leaders to explain the GAO's interaction with the profession and to give their views on how the profession can continue to effectively serve the capital...