2. Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency
(International Monetary Fund)
Description | Standard | Self-Assessment
| IMF Fiscal Transparency ROSC
Fiscal transparency strengthens accountability of the government and decreases the risk of maintaining unsustainable policies. It can help provide better information to investors, the benefits of which will be reflected in stronger support for sound economic policies by a well-informed public, thereby leading a country to macroeconomic stability and high-quality growth.
The transparency requirements of the
should help to ensure that a sufficiently complete picture of the structure and finances of government is available. This will allow investors and the general public to reliably assess the soundness of fiscal policy. The code is based on 4 general principles of fiscal transparency:
- clarity of roles and responsibilities;
- public availability of information;
- open budget preparation, execution, and reporting; and
- independent assurances of integrity
The U.S. completed the International Monetary Fund’s Fiscal Transparency Questionnaire and Self-Evaluation Report in the autumn of 1999, and posted the results on the Treasury website. These self-assessments were completed by the Office of Management and Budget and the Treasury Department.
In 2002-03, the U.S. participated in an additional assessment on fiscal transparency performed by staff at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in cooperation with U.S. authorities. The IMF, with consent from U.S. authorities, published the results of their assessment as a Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) in August 2003. This report is based on the earlier U.S. self-assessment, discussions with U.S. authorities, and other sources.