Activity Based Total Accountability (ABTA)

This is an online version of the book written by State Senator William J. "Bill" Posey. It describes what ABTA is and how it can be used.

Florida Performs

This website reports financial information on each Florida state agency. You can view total budgets along with unit costs.

Virginia Performs

Virginia Performs contains a wealth of valuable information about the Commonwealth's overall quality of life; it also tracks in detail the efforts state government is making to monitor performance and improve results for citizens.

Journal of Government Financial Management

This is a good reference for those interested in Government Accountability.

The Pew Center on the States

The Pew Center on the States posts an overall grade for each of the 50 states based on a set of criteria. The Web site lets you click on a state to find more information.

OMB Requiring 'Snapshots' of Financial Performance

Citizens should expect their federal government to spend their taxpayer dollars effectively and more efficiently each year. For FY08, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) required each of the 24 CFO Act agencies to produce a two-page snapshot that summarizes its budget, financial and performance results

Activity-Based Costing and Management: The Texas Pilot Project

Window on State Government Web site.

TEXAS – Balanced Measures

Article about Texas' initiatives in activity-based accounting.

Activity Based Costing Books and Publicatitions

A list of Activity Based Cost (ABC) Reference books.

Iowa's Department of Administrative Services

This is an interesting question and answer page about the department's newly implemented approach to activity-based costing.

Purchase FGAR

The Florida Government Accountability Report makes it easy to find information about what state agencies are doing to meet the needs of Florida's citizens.

Association of Government Accountants CGFM Program

Suggested Readings

State and Local Government, Politics and Public Policies
David C. Saffell and Harry Basehart, McGraw Hill, Ninth Edition, 2009.

Read the whole book as time allows. This is an overall good reference for how government works or should work.

A Citizen’s Guide to Public Accountability
Henry E. McCandless, Trafford Publishing

Read chapters 1-5 and 14. This reading is intended to establish a contextual reference to what accountability in government should ultimately be. The text is centric to Canadian government but they do a good job of explaining how things should work.

An Introduction to the Policy Process, Theories, Concepts, and Models of Public Policy Making
Thomas A Birkland, M. E. Sharpe, Inc, 2005 Second Edition. ISBN 0-7656-1489-8