dwell on the presence or absence of the individual elements. This has been done by not asking reviewers to answer, “Yes,” “No,” “Not Applicable,” or “Don’t Know” for each item. Instead, reviewers are asked to read the report and use the Guidelines primarily as a reminder of the expected content for a report. In doing so, they should note matters for which the presentation can be improved because the information is unclear, inconsistent, incomplete, too verbose, etc. For each such instance, the reviewer should prepare a Crafting Recommendations for Improvement – Recommendations can and should be provided to: Improve the presentation of the information Eliminate reporting or disclosure weaknesses Make the report more useful to the user Address editorial matters Improve the Summary of Performance and Financial Information (if one has been issued and reviewed). The third category, “Make the report more useful to the user” is intended to reflect the notion that transparent and accountable reports are not only comprehensive, they are also candid, particularly in regard to conditions and situations that are already widely known. The reports present negative as well as positive information and they do not leave readers with unanswered questions. Identifying the category for which a recommendation is provided is helpful. More important, the recommendations should identify: the condition for which there is an opportunity for improvement, the page number of the matter for which there is an opportunity for the specific change recommended, and the reason why the change would be an improvement. It is difficult to incorporate recommendations that do not include the above elements into the combined recommendations to be sent to the agency. Considering Agency Responsiveness - The most recent comment letter and and the agency's response to the recommendations will be given to reviewers for agencies that have previously submitted their PAR or AFR for review. The reviewers are to refer to the letters and ascertain whether and how the agency has changed the
6. The illustrative displays of the financial statements in OMB Circular A-136 may be modified; lines may be added or removed; different words may be used from those in the displays; and lines, notes, and rows or columns in notes that do not apply or are not informative should be excluded. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.1) 7. Schedule totals presented in footnotes in support of amounts presented in the statements should agree with the amounts presented in the body of the financial statements. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.1) Amounts should be rounded to the nearest whole, thousand, or million dollars. The chosen rounding level should be used consistently throughout the and footnotes. Individual amounts should add up to rounded totals. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.1) 8. Line numbers should not appear on the financial statements (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.1) 9. Footnotes should be sequentially numbered. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.1) III.B-FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (BALANCE SHEET) 1. Entity assets should be consolidated with non-entity assets, except for non-entity assets meeting the definition of fiduciary assets. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3) 2. Intragovernmental assets must be reported separately from assets with non-Federal entities. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3) 3. Investments in Federal securities must be reported separately from investments in non-Federal securities. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3) 4. Gross receivables must be reduced to net realizable value by an allowance for accounts. (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3) 5. Interest receivable should be reported as a component of the appropriate asset (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3) 6. Interest receivable related to pre-1992 and post-1991 direct loans and acquired defaulted guaranteed loans must be reported as a component of loans receivable and related foreclosed property (OMB Circular A-136, Section II.4.3.3).