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Throughout the year the Commonwealth of Massachusetts accounts for its financial operations on the statutory basis of accounting, often referred to as the “budgetary basis”. The Commonwealth’s budget and the statutory basis financial statements follow the accounting principles defined by Massachusetts law.
For its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the Commonwealth reports on the basis of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) as defined for governments by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board. These instructions assist departments in preparing the GAAP departmental information included in the Annual Report.