93 NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Note 9. Other Assets 

Other Assets as of September 30, 2019, and 2018 

Restated

(In billions of dollars) 2019 2018

Advances and prepayments ................................................................ 68.0 70.0

Regulatory assets............................................................................... 18.8 17.3

Investments in Multilateral Development Banks .................................... 7.8 7.7

FDIC receivable from resolution activity, net ......................................... 2.8 3.0

Other ................................................................................................. 13.2 13.8

 Total other assets ............................................................................ 110.6 111.8

Advances and prepayments are assets that represent funds disbursed in contemplation of the future performance of 

services, receipt of goods, the incurrence of expenditures, or the receipt of other assets. These include advances to contractors 

and grantees, travel advances, and prepayments for items such as rents, taxes, insurance, royalties, commissions, and 

supplies. 

 With regard to regulatory assets, the DOE’s PMAs and TVA record certain amounts as assets in accordance with FASB 

ASC Topic 980, Regulated Operations. The provisions of FASB ASC Topic 980 require that regulated enterprises reflect rate 

actions of the regulator in their financial statements, when appropriate. These rate actions can provide reasonable assurance 

of the existence of an asset, reduce or eliminate the value of an asset, or impose a liability on a regulated enterprise. In order 

to defer incurred costs under FASB ASC Topic 980, a regulated entity must have the statutory authority to establish rates that 

recover all costs, and those rates must be charged to and collected from customers. If the PMAs’ or TVA’s rates should 

become market-based, FASB ASC Topic 980 would no longer be applicable, and all of the deferred costs under that standard 

would be expensed. 

On behalf of the U.S., Treasury invests in certain MDBs, through subscriptions to capital, which allows the MDBs to 

issue loans at market-based rates to middle-income developing countries. These paid-in capital investments are nonmarketable equity investments valued at cost. 

The FDIC has the responsibility for resolving failed institutions in an orderly and efficient manner. The resolution 

process involves valuing a failing institution, marketing it, soliciting and accepting bids for the sale of the institution, 

determining which bid is least costly to the insurance fund, and working with the acquiring institution through the closing 

process. FDIC records receivables for resolutions that include payments by the DIF to cover obligations to insured 

depositors, advances to receiverships and conservatorships for working capital, and administrative expenses paid on behalf of 

receiverships and conservatorships. 

Other items included in “other” are contract financing payments and estimated future payments to contractors, 

purchased power generating capacity, deferred nuclear generating units, derivative assets, the balance of assets held by the 

experience rated carriers participating in the Health Benefits and Life Insurance Program (pending disposition on behalf of 

OPM), and the cost contribution to buildout the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband. 

In fiscal year 2019, a misstatement related to Smithsonian Institution resulted in a decrease of $1.9 billion to the Other 

assets line and an increase to Note 7—Debt and Equity Securities for fiscal year 2018.