Richard C. Brooks

An analysis of residential sanitation collection pricing under alternative delivery arrangements

This paper investigates residential sanitation collection (RSC) pricing under two different service delivery arrangements: (1) the municipal RSC arrangement where municipal employees collect residential refuse, and (2) the contract RSC arrangement where private sector firms, under contract with a municipality, collect residential refuse. The results of the study indicate that municipal RSC prices are significantly higher than contract RSC prices. Furthermore, municipal RSC prices exhibit greater variability than contract RSC prices. These findings suggest that contract pricing is consistent with pricing in a competitive market.

Privatization of government services: an overview and review of the literature

Privatization continues to receive serious consideration at the federal, state, and local government levels. The most frequent reason cited for privatizing services is to reduce the size and cost of government. While many government entities have privatized services, it is often up to academic researchers to determine if the goals of privatization have been realized and to shed light on the organizational and service characteristics that make it more likely that the results of privatizing a particular service will be positive. This paper seeks to provide a background to those researchers interested in examining the privatization of government services. The paper reviews and synthesizes prior privatization research and discusses future research directions.

The determinants of monitoring costs in not-for-profit organizations

This research uses data from 2,470 not-for-profit-organizations (NFPOs) to examine the impact of organization size, risk, and complexity on monitoring costs in the NFP sector. OLS regression analysis indicate that monitoring costs are higher for (a) larger NFPOs, (b) NFPOs subject to the Single Audit Act, 8 NFPOs having larger amounts of assets tied up in receivables and inventories, (d) NFPOs spending a larger percentage of their expenses on program support services, and (e) NFPOs providing higher compensation to their officers and directors. In addition, some NFPOs such as schools and hospitals are associated with higher monitoring costs.

An Examination of University Library Collections of International Accounting and Finance Periodicals.

Abstract The global influences in business make it important to internationalize the accounting and business curriculum. One measure of support for the internationalization effort is the ability and/or willingness of university libraries to subscribe to international periodicals. This study assesses the status of university library holdings of international accounting and finance periodicals. The results indicate that schools accredited by the American Assembly of Colleges and Schools of Business (AACSB) tend to have more extensive international periodical holdings.

Research and trends in governmetal accounting and reporting

Budgeting is a form of financial reporting using accounting information. This paper reviews current research and trends in governmental accounting and reporting for state and local governments in the United States. In the first section, the contributions of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board are reviewed, including the conceptual framework now guiding the evolution of accounting standards. Also reviewed are developments that are expected to have a significant impact on budgeting in the future, including service efforts and accomplishments reporting, financial condition, and budget reporting. The second section reviews accounting research in four distinct areas: capital markets; financial reporting; behavioral experiments; and, public choice. The future of governmental accounting and reporting will reflect changes in the standards of practice and the use of theory to direct research.