Report of Management To the Shareholders of BellSouth Corporation T he condensed financial statements in this summary annual report were derived from the consolidated financial statements that appear in the appendix to the proxy statement for the 1996 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Management is responsible for preparing the consolidated financial statements and for maintaining and monitoring the corporation's system of internal accounting controls. Management believes BellSouth's system of internal accounting controls provides reasonable assurance that transactions are properly authorized and recorded, and that there are adequate safeguards to protect company assets. Key elements in BellSouth's system of internal controls include a strong internal auditing program, careful selection of managers and appropriate division of responsibilities. Communications programs aimed at assuring that policies, standards and managerial authorities are understood throughout the organization are also an integral part of the system of controls.
Special attention is given to controls while internal changes are being implemented.
A more complete description of these controls, along with management's opinion as to their overall effectiveness, is contained in the detailed Report of Management included in the proxy statement appendix.