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IMA Supports DATA Act for Greater Transparency Accountability in Federal Spending
Marc Gerrone
IMA
(201) 474-1502
mgerrone@imanet.org
Kristy Skowronski
Stern + Associates
(908) 276-4344, x-208
kskowronski@sternassociates.com
IMA
(201) 474-1502
mgerrone@imanet.org
Kristy Skowronski
Stern + Associates
(908) 276-4344, x-208
kskowronski@sternassociates.com
Montvale, N.J., May 1, 2014 – IMA® (Institute of Management Accountants) fully supports the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (DATA Act), recently passed by Congress. The approved legislation has moved to President Obama’s office to be signed into law.
In support of President Obama’s May 2013 Open Data Policy, the DATA Act mandates establishing financial data standards for federal spending and publishing spending data online in order to provide greater transparency and accountability for that spending. The DATA Act stipulates that the data standard should “incorporate a widely-accepted, nonproprietary, searchable, platform-independent computer readable format.”
“IMA applauds Congress for recognizing the importance of data standards to make important financial and business information computer readable and searchable,” said Brad J. Monterio, chair of IMA’s Technology Solutions and Practices Committee and IMA Board Member. “This greatly enhances the transparency of federal spending information and holds agencies accountable for how they spend taxpayer dollars. IMA supports the use of the globally adopted, proven data standard called eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) to meet the requirements of the DATA Act – it is a non-proprietary, open-source, technology that can be used across the hundreds of systems within federal agencies, regardless of platforms.”
XBRL is a widely accepted standard used to communicate financial and business information electronically. IMA is a founding member of the global, multi-stakeholder consortium that developed and maintains the XBRL standard used by governments, regulators and millions of companies around the world. IMA is also a leader in the advancement of organizational capability, governance, ethics and transparency, and believes it is important that governments help to set the tone and lead by example in these areas.
“IMA urges President Obama to sign The DATA Act into law,” added Monterio. “Not only does the XBRL standard help hold the federal government accountable to its taxpayers and serving the public interest, it gives management accountants working in government greater ability to access, manage and analyze their business data more effectively. This allows them to spend quality time on benchmarking, performance measurement and analytics, and less time in gathering the information.”
About IMA® (Institute of Management Accountants)
IMA®, the association of accountants and financial professionals in business, is one of the largest and most respected associations focused exclusively on advancing the management accounting profession. Globally, IMA supports the profession through research, the CMA® (Certified Management Accountant) program, continuing education, networking and advocacy of the highest ethical business practices. IMA has a global network of more than 70,000 members in 120 countries and 300 professional and student chapters. Headquartered in Montvale, N.J., USA, IMA provides localized services through its four global regions: The Americas, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and Middle East/Africa. For more information about IMA, please visit www.imanet.org.