Audit Oversight

The Palestinian local governments suffer from many negative practices, which is considered a
contradiction to the practices of good governance. Because of the vital role of the local
governments and the tasks entrusted to them, identifying the negative practices and deviations that
fall within them is of particular importance because these practices can be the beginning of the
emergence, if not manifestation, of corruption. This study deals with the negative practices and
common mistakes in the work of local authorities that affect the governance of their work by
adopting a descriptive and analytical approach through the qualitative method in collecting data
based on in-depth interviews, in addition to the preliminary data from the internal reports of the
Ministry of Local Government and the Office of Financial and Administrative Control and the
literature of the Anti-Corruption Commission. Coupled with relevant local and international
literature.
The study is based on all the evidence as inputs to produce results and outputs in the form of
interventions. Several interventions and strategies that can be identified to enhance good
governance are presented, accompanied by some practical proposals. The work on them falls on
the shoulders of the Ministry of Local Government, the Oversight Bureau, and the Anti-Corruption
Commission, the most important of which is the need to establish a special unit in the Anti
Corruption Commission for the purpose of dealing with suspicions and possible manifestations of
corruption in the country. Local bodies. It also concluded the need to develop an internal audit
system, with its two parts, control, and audit, within the local authorities in the form of
organizational units, wherever available, and possible review committees. The study proposes
several possible tools, including the development of a legislative framework of laws, regulations,
policies, procedures, and evidence for the purposes of making the idea of internal auditing possible
and applicable. Perhaps the most important proposal is to work on establishing an internal audit
system by recommending the development of a recruitment and training project to provide
appropriate cadres in this field while activating the idea of community oversight and including it
in the internal audit tools. Local bodies are supposed to be open to community work, and modern
societal oversight tools are among the most practical and feasible tools that are assigned to
measuring and evaluating local bodies.

Sumário: I. Introdução; 2. A instituição do controle governamental no Brasil e o modelo de contas; 3. As disfunções do modelo; 4. Conclusão. Palavras~chave: tomada de contas; prestação de contas; auditoria governamental; controle interno; controle externo. Este artigo analisa o modelo de verificação das contas dos administradores públicos brasileiros -desde a chamada auditoria governamental, levada a efeito pelos órgãos de controle interno dos poderes Executivo, Legislativo e Judiciário, até o julgamento pelo controle externo, de responsabilidade do Legislativo e com o apoio do Tribunal de Contas -, cujos resultados têm sido insatisfatórios. O artigo aponta as prováveis causas: o fato de o modelo estar voltado para ações passadas, ao invés de atuar no presente, ainda passível de correções; a falta de análises prévias à aplicação modelo, em especial a econômica, financeira, a de risco e a da relação custo/benefício entre o próprio controle e seus resultados; a falta de comunicação, no âmbito da administração pública, entre os subsistemas de controle e de planejamento. This paper analyzes the Brazilian accountability system -from the socalled public auditing undertaken by the internai controls of the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary branches, to the judgement by the exernal control, represented by the Legislative with the Federal Court of Accounts' support -and its unsatisfactory results. The paper points out the probable causes: the act that the system is more concerned about the past actions than about the present ones, which could be corrected; the absence of analyses of the model (especially economic, financiai, risk, and cost/benefit analyzes) before it is put into effect; the lack of communication between the planning and controllevels of the public administration. * Artigo recebido em fev. e aceito em jun. 1977. ** Analista de finanças e controle externo do Tribunal de Contas da União e professor da Associação de Ensino Unificado do Distrito Federal.

O artigo consiste em uma analise do desenho institucional existente durante a Ditadura Militar brasileira, com enfase sobre as perspectivas de controle do Executivo por parte do Legislativo, por um lado, e por parte do Tribunal de Contas da Uniao, por outro. Nesse contexto, procurar-se-a demonstrar de que maneira o processo de burocratizacao observavel no periodo se articula as tendencias gerais observadas no debate classico sobre o tema. Serao explicitadas as estrategias do governo no sentido de tornar a burocracia tao impermeavel quanto possivel a pressoes vindas, principalmente, dos parlamentares e dos politicos profissionais. This article consists in an analysis of the institutional design existent during the Brazilian Military Dictatorship, with emphasis on the possibilities of Legislative control over the Executive, by one side, and also by the Tribunal de Contas da Uniao [National Tribunal of Accounts]. In this context, it will be shown in which ways the bureaucratization pro...

A presente pesquisa analisou o controle interno na gestao de recursos humanos nas câmaras municipais nos municipios da Regiao Integrada de Desenvolvimento Economico - RIDE do polo Petrolina-PE e Juazeiro-BA. A importância da area de recursos humanos e progressiva e essencial no cenario atual em que os colaboradores da organizacao tem assumido um reconhecido titulo de capital humano, transformando-se em ativos valiosos a instituicao, inclusive na area de gestao publica. De carater descritivo e predominantemente quantitativo, a pesquisa foi operacionalizada atraves da conducao de uma investigacao documental e da aplicacao de questionarios nas câmaras municipais dos municipios que compoem a RIDE, aos responsaveis pelo setor de RH de cada municipio correspondente. Os principais resultados obtidos demonstram que ha muito a se prospectar para atingir um nivel razoavel de controle interno em gestao de recursos humanos nas câmaras municipais da regiao, uma vez que a estrutura destas organiz...

In the dynamic landscape of risk management, the traditional annual audit plan falls short of addressing evolving concerns in a timely manner. As an Internal Auditor within the Group Internal Audit of a conglomerate in Bangladesh, it's imperative to reassess the rigid structure of our approach. The rapid evolution of risks renders an annual plan obsolete. We cannot afford to address last year's concerns months after the fact. Just as we wouldn't plan our entire week's wardrobe solely based on the week's initial weather forecast, we shouldn't blindly adhere to a year-long audit plan. Challenges of Traditional Approaches Reflecting on past experiences in internal audit, it becomes evident that the traditional annual audit plan, once meticulously crafted, often fails to accommodate changing circumstances effectively. Adhering to this plan, regardless of evolving risks, leads to unnecessary stress, compromises on the quality of outcomes, late nights, and dissatisfaction in ticking off items on the plan just for the sake of completion.

The post-covid is still as challenging as covid-19 era. Private and
governmental organizations were required to overcome difficulties
in carrying out operational activities and discovering solutions.
Hence, it is crucial to utilize comprehensive approaches to ensure
the continuous execution of essential public interest activities, even
in limited situations. Collaborative governance is widely defined as
the methods and structures for formulating policy decisions and
overseeing administration in ways that serve the public interest,
going beyond the limitations of public institutions. Due to the
primary aim of collaborative governance significantly influencing
public interests, effective and efficient results become highly crucial.
Risk management on collaboration risk identification is needed to
ensure accountability among public sector officials. While
institutionalism studies have received considerable attention, there
is a limited focus on the significance of risk management in
sustaining collaborative outcomes. The purpose of this study was to
review systematically the existing research addressing collaborationrelated risks and exploring potential solutions. This research
examines journal articles released within the past decade, covering
the period from 2013 to 2023. Nevertheless, the study continues to
rely on certain foundational theories from the past. This study will
enable the effective resolution of the implemented solution in
conducting collaborative governance as effectively and efficiently as
possible which could be useful for future researchers, policymakers,
and related stakeholders

Methodology/research approach: It was possible to fulfi l the objective assumed by presenting a proposal for the author’s model (function) of salary changes, which takes into account the specifi c nature of the pandemic period. When constructing and using this model, data resulting from the Database of Annual Reports of Audit Firms for 2020-2022, created at the Polish Agency for Audit Oversight – PANA since its inception in 2020, were used. The analysis of the data available in this database, at the same time those that coincided with the period of the Covid-19 pandemic and were appropriately extended for the needs of the analysis, consisted in diagnosing the peculiarities of the studied sample and establishing the characteristics of the explaining variables, as a result of which a proposal was formulated for modelling the issue undertaken.
Results: The article confi rms the existence of a dependence of the remuneration for statutory audit services on the type of the fi nancial statement audited, the “high” or “low” season of performing the audit and the distance between the audit fi rm and the entity audited. In addition, it focuses on a deeper understanding of the sign of the coefficient appearing in the model with the variable indicating the season. The study has also indicated a trend of undertaking fi nancial statement audit assignments from entities relatively more distant from the audit firm.

The analysis of 155 inspection protocols indicated the main directions for corrections in the activities of audit firms. The conclusions from the previous study have not undergone significant changes. Generally, it can be observed that there is a relationship between a properly designed and implemented quality control system in an audit firm and the number and quality of irregularities identified in the audit documentation. It can also be noted that more frequent and critically conducted quality controls of assignments translate into better quality of opinions issued in audit reports. This is clearly reflected in the analysis of the number of irregularities in the audits of financial statements of Public Interest Entities (audit assignment quality control is mandatory) compared to the number and quality of irregularities in the audits of financial statements of entities other than Public Interest Entities. Due to the separation of domain controls, it became possible to more accurately analyze certain substantive areas of irregularities. As a result, a description of irregularities in audits of financial statements of investment funds has been prepared.

The key changes compared to the former quality control standards include:
- a more proactive approach to quality management adapted to the method and scope of operation of the audit firm, by focusing on achieving the set quality objectives, identified quality risks related to these objectives and responding to such risks (hereinafter referred to as the company's risk assessment process),
- greater emphasis on corporate governance and leadership requirements, including increased responsibilities and accountability of the management itself,
- modernization of standards by taking into account technology requirements, network requirements, use of external service providers,
- new information and communication requirements,
- enhanced requirements for the monitoring and remediation process to more proactively monitor the IQCS of the audit firm and correct weaknesses effectively and in a timely manner.
Summing up the irregularities in the design of the IQCS, which in particular translate into an increased risk of irregularities in the examination, the following should be pointed out:
- lack of or unclear rules related to the need to use consultations;
- lack of, unclear or unmatched with the activities of the audit firm rules related to the selection of documentation of the engagement for quality control;
- lack or imprecise manner of defining the principles of performing the quality control;
- lack of or unclear rules of rotation of the key statutory auditor or quality controller related to minimizing risks related to independence; in relation to this point, the lack of compliance with the provisions of the KSKJ1 as well as the IESBA code of ethics should also be indicated;
- lack of definition of the method of conducting ongoing monitoring;
- lack of or unclear rules for selecting a partner or an engagement for inspection;
- lack of or imprecise description of the rules for carrying out the engagement inspection;
- lack of information on how to find the root cause of irregularities;
- lack of or unclear rules for periodic monitoring, not adapted to the activities of the audit firm (along with specifying who will carry out such monitoring).
The main problem highlighted during the thematic review was the mismatch between the IQCS adapted by the individual audit firms and their actual activities. Therefore, when preparing the inspection procedures, the Agency decided to divide them due to the differences in the law (regulation, act and quality control standards) and prepared separate control procedures in relation to:
- audit firms examining public interest entities (the need to verify the fulfillment of the requirements of Regulation 537/2014 and the increased requirements of the Act and standards);
- staffed audit firms that do not audit public interest entities;
- unstaffed audit firms that do not audit public interest entities (due to the possibility of not taking into account some of the requirements of the KSKJ1).

As a result of the conducted analyses of annual reports of audit firms (AF), a broader picture of changes in the activities of these firms in the years 2020-2022 has been obtained:

1) Regarding the legal forms of AF, there is a trend of gradually decreasing participation of sole proprietorships and transforming AF into joint-stock companies.

2) There is a visible decrease in the number of AF performing financial audit activities (hereinafter referred to as active AF) with a slightly decreasing number of audit firms (BR) conducting audits.

3) The average number of statutory audits of financial statements of entities other than Public Interest Entities (JZP) in AF outside the TOP12 decreased to 11 audits. The number of audits of financial statements of entities other than JZP in firms from the TOP12 dropped to an average of 25 audits per 1 auditor for the company.

4) The number of AF with auditors performing over 50 services per year decreased to 68 (in 2022, there were a total of 150 such BR), indicating a better understanding of the need to allocate sufficient time for auditing by BR and AF. The Agency pays special attention to this phenomenon during inspections, publications, and communications, and gradual improvement should be positively assessed.

5) Information provided in the annual reports submitted by AF indicates that in 2022, 1,999 reports on the audit of statutory financial statements of JZP were issued, and 29,169 reports on the audit of statutory financial statements of entities other than JZP were issued. Regarding the audit of financial statements of JZP, 88.7% of opinions were unqualified (compared to 88.4% in 2021). Unqualified opinions, including opinions with explanatory paragraphs, accounted for, as in 2020 and 2021, 97.5% of all issued opinions. Also, concerning the audit of financial statements of entities other than JZP, the most frequent opinion issued was unqualified (82.4%, compared to 79.7% in 2021) as well as unqualified with explanatory paragraphs (12.8%, compared to 14.5% in 2021), totaling 95.2% of all issued opinions (in 2021 - 94.2%). Qualified opinions accounted for 4.5% of all issued opinions (compared to 5.5% in 2021).

6) Generally, there has been a gradual increase in audit fees. This increase is around 17%, slightly above the inflation rate for 2022 (according to data from the Central Statistical Office, the average annual consumer price index in 2022 was 14.1%).

7) Regarding the audit of funds and sub-funds, it should be noted that audit fees for this segment of audit firms are low and have essentially not increased despite a significant increase in the cost of employees performing work on audits and the cost of valuations performed by experts employed by AF.

8) The analysis of the number of audits of JZP and the fees for these audits confirms that there is a phenomenon of de-concentration of audits in the industrial processing, wholesale and retail trade, information and communication, and professional, scientific, and technical activities sectors. This is also evident in changes in fees in individual groups of audit firms. However, it is difficult to speak about de-concentration of audits in the financial and insurance activities (including associated investment funds and sub-funds) as well as in the construction industry.

9) Audits of entities other than JZP are carried out by audit firms outside the TOP12 in 75% of cases (i.e., in relation to approximately 22,000 statutory audits). However, concerning the total value of these audits, TOP12 firms perform 60% of audits, and BIG4 - 48%. In 2022, there was an increase in the number of audited financial statements by 4%. The increase mainly affected audits performed by TOP12 firms (2.5%) rather than other audit firms (1.5%). Audit firms outside the TOP12 have a dominant position in all types of audits; however, financial activities (including investment funds) are audited by TOP12 firms in close to half of the cases.

10) Regarding audits of entities other than JZP conducted by BIG4, there was a slight decrease in the number of audits of financial statements (about 1% compared to 2021). Regardless of this fact, BIG4's revenues from audits of entities other than JZP increased by approximately 12%. Of particular note is the nearly 60% increase in fees for auditing funds and sub-funds (the median value of this fee in BIG4 is over three times the median for the entire non-JZP audit market). This is the only industry where such a significant increase in fees was recorded in BIG4, and this increase continues the trend from 2021 when these fees increased by 80%. However, it should be noted that the number of funds and sub-funds audited by BIG4 accounts for only 11% of the total number of audits performed by all audit firms.

11) The structure of total revenues of AF shown in the annual reports in 2022 indicates different behavior patterns of individual groups of AF. AF from the TOP12 specialize in and mainly perform financial audit services (mostly statutory audits and reviews of financial statements). Within other services, AF from the TOP12 mainly provide unqualified attestation services not reserved for statutory auditors and related services. Other AF mainly rely on services other than financial auditing. In the case of AF from outside the TOP12 providing services to JZP, the most important

Audit firms have not made sufficient efforts to adequately address these issues in their quality control systems, as required by mandatory standards, as evidenced by the lack of mandatory quality control of audit assignments regarding financial statements of entities on the Alternative Stock Market (ASO). Important internal factors contributing to the relatively low quality of financial statements of ASO entities include:

- Lack of significant interest from supervisory boards and management in the quality of financial reporting (including lack of communication with auditors).
- Outsourcing of accounting to accounting offices without internal control.
- Emphasis on tax accounting.
- Low attention to interim reporting.
- Sole reliance on price in selecting audit firms.

These factors are also reflected in thematic inspection findings, such as:

- Lack of documentation of communication with supervisory boards and management.
- Difficult and insufficient communication with accounting offices.
- Failure to evaluate the entity's internal control over financial reporting processes.
- Underestimation of the workload leading to inadequate audit procedures, lack of necessary consultations, failure to obtain other resources (e.g., permanent assistants ensuring adequate quality), and lack of use of quality control reviewer.

Regarding financial statement items, investors have indicated important but highly risky areas of financial reporting:

- Intangible assets and intellectual property (with particular emphasis on know-how and research and development activities).
- Financial assets (shares, stocks, and loans).
- Research and development activities (interim settlements).
- Provisions for liabilities.

Additionally, investors have raised concerns about the weak financial condition of ASO entities. It should be noted that key audit matters presented in the audit report largely reflect these areas, enriched with revenue-related risks and fraud risks. However, this reflection is not consistent with the documentation of procedures conducted by the auditor. Auditors inadequately document activities related to assessing:

- Going concern (also due to lack of communication with management and the supervisory board).
- The accuracy of significant estimates (due to poor communication with accounting offices and limitations in hiring necessary experts).
- Fraud risk.

It is also worth noting that as a result of inspections, insufficient quality of verification of a key element of the financial statement, the cash flow statement, is observed. Deficiencies in this area are rarely indicated in audit reports despite identified errors in this area during inspections.

The analysis of 139 inspection protocols indicated the main directions for corrective action by audit firms. Generally, it can be observed that there is a relationship between a well-designed and properly implemented quality control system in an audit firm and a low number and low significance of deficiencies disclosed in audit documentation. It can also be noted that more frequent and critically conducted quality control checks on assignments translate into properly issued opinions in audit reports. This is clearly reflected in the analysis of the number of deficiencies in the audits of financial statements of Public Interest Entities (PIEs) (assignment quality control is mandatory) compared to the number and quality of deficiencies in the audits of financial statements of entities other than PIEs.

However, compared to the previous year, there has been an improvement in the quality of documentation in audits of financial statements of entities other than PIEs. Nevertheless, attention is still drawn to significant weaknesses in the planning phase, which affects the entire audit.

As a result of the conducted analysis of annual reports, a broader picture of changes in the activities of Public Accountants (PA) in the years 2020-2021 has been obtained:

1) Changes in the structure of PA forms indicate a gradual decrease in the proportion of sole proprietorships and the transformation of PAs into capital companies. There is a visible decrease in the number of PAs conducting financial audit activities (hereinafter referred to as active PAs) with a slightly decreasing number of audit teams performing audits.

2) The average number of statutory financial statement audits for entities other than Public Interest Entities (PIEs) in PAs outside the TOP11 increased to 12 audits (compared to around 11 audits in 2020), confirming the growing concentration of audits in individual PAs. The number of audits of financial statements for entities other than PIEs in firms within the TOP11 increased to an average of 32 audits per certified auditor for a given firm (compared to 27 audits in 2020).

3) The number of PAs with certified auditors performing over 50 services per year decreased from 88 to 76 (in 2021, there were a total of 174 such auditors – in 2020, there were 194), indicating a better understanding of the need to dedicate sufficient time to auditing by audit teams and PAs, as noted by the Agency during inspections, publications, and communications.

4) In 2021, 2035 opinions were issued on the audit of statutory financial statements of PIEs (compared to 1898 opinions in 2020), and 28,041 opinions were issued on the audit of statutory financial statements for entities other than PIEs. Regarding the audits of PIE financial statements, 88.4% of the opinions were unqualified (compared to 78.5% in 2020). Unqualified opinions, including opinions with an explanatory paragraph, accounted for 97.8% of all issued opinions, similar to 2020. In relation to audits of financial statements for entities other than PIEs, the most common opinion issued was an unqualified opinion (79.7%, compared to 74.4% in 2020), followed by an unqualified opinion with an explanatory paragraph (14.5%, compared to 20.9% in 2020), totaling 94.2% of all issued opinions (compared to 93.3% in 2020). Qualified opinions accounted for 5.5% of all issued opinions (compared to 4.3% in 2020).

5) Generally, there is a gradual, albeit slight, increase in audit fees. This increase is on average slightly above the inflation rate for 2021, around 7% (according to data from the Central Statistical Office, the average annual consumer price index for goods and services in 2021 was 5.1%). The increase in fees was stronger in PAs within the TOP11 (especially in PAs within the BIG4 group), which focused their activities on audits with high workload while simultaneously reducing the number of serviced entities (for BIG4, the number of audits of financial statements for entities other than PIEs decreased by nearly 23%).

6) Significant changes occurred in the structure of entities performing audits of investment funds and sub-funds. While the majority of audits (close to 80% in 2021, compared to 72% in 2020) of investment funds and sub-funds that are PIEs were conducted by BIG4 in 2021, funds and sub-funds not being PIEs are serviced by them to a negligible extent (only 10% in 2021, compared to 32% in 2020).

7) The structure of total revenues of PAs indicated in the annual reports in 2021 indicates different behavioral patterns among individual groups of PAs. PAs within the TOP11 specialize mainly in providing financial audit services (mostly statutory audits and reviews of financial statements). As part of other services, PAs within the TOP11 mainly provide unqualified attestation services and related services. Other PAs mainly rely on services other than financial audit. In the case of PAs outside the TOP11 providing services to PIEs, the most important service besides financial audit is tax advisory. For PAs outside the TOP11 providing services exclusively to entities other than PIEs, the main sources of revenue are service bookkeeping, tax advisory, and general advisory services.

The analysis of 106 inspection protocols revealed that the main problems during the examination of estimates include:
- Assessing the impact of events after the balance sheet date on the accuracy of the estimate
- Verifying the sources of data upon which management determined the value of estimates
- Inconsistencies in the applied fair value measurement models and assumptions related to the models
- Incorrect assessment of the reasonableness of estimates and their distortions
- Improper documentation of the basis of formulated conclusions by the audit team
- Irregularities in documenting signs of possible management bias regarding estimates

The analysis of 106 inspection protocols revealed that:

- For different groups of audit firms, characteristic main irregularities in the functioning of the internal quality control system can be identified. Thus:
          - For firms belonging to international networks, the weakest aspect is compliance with Polish conditions and the Polish Act on Certified Auditors.
        - For firms auditing Public Interest Entities (PIEs) but not belonging to international networks, the biggest problem is the lack of proper monitoring, inspection, and quality control of assignments.
            - Other audit firms (especially micro ones) mainly struggle with the lack of cooperation with other certified auditors, which would allow them to improve quality through better monitoring, quality control of assignments, or consultations.
- A common problem at the level of the quality control system is accurately determining the workload of assignments.
- The most common identified problems in the documentation of financial statement audits are the correct identification and estimation of the risk of material misstatement due to fraud or error, as well as the gathering of sufficient and appropriate audit evidence.
- In the case of documentation of the audit of consolidated financial statements, the most significant problem is assessing the appropriateness, completeness, and accuracy of consolidation adjustments and reclassifications, as well as assessing whether there are fraud risk factors or signs of possible management bias.

W niniejszej publikacji przeprowadzona została analiza statystyczna ponad 30 tys. badań sprawozdań finansowych wykonanych przez 2257 biegłych rewidentów w ramach 1062 firm audytorskich w oparciu o przekazane przez FA informacje oraz doświadczenia związane z przeprowadzanymi przez Agencję kontrolami.
Przeprowadzona analiza wskazała na:
 Istnienie zależności pomiędzy wielkością FA i sposobem organizacji usługi badania (im większa FA tym większy zespół biorący udział w badaniu) co znajduje zwykle odzwierciedlenie w kształtowaniu wynagrodzenia za usługę badania.
 Brak jasnej zależności pomiędzy przesłankami wymienionymi w art. 80 ust. 2 (pracochłonność, stopień złożoności prac oraz wymagane kwalifikacje) a wynagrodzeniem FA. Prowadzone przez PANA kontrole wskazały na konieczność pogłębienia procedur badania sprawozdań finansowych a szczególnie na poprawienie zrozumienia przez BR sposobu funkcjonowania podmiotów badanych oraz odzwierciedlenia tego zrozumienia w identyfikowanych ryzykach oraz procedurach mitygujących te ryzyka. Powiązanie tych obu faktów wskazuje na niewłaściwe szacowanie przez FA pracochłonności, niezbędnej do zapewnienia wysokiej jakości badania sprawozdania finansowego.
 Nieprawidłowości w zaangażowaniu się przez biegłych rewidentów w badanie. Na obligatoryjność czynnego udziału kluczowego biegłego rewidenta w badaniu wskazuje wprost art. 66 ust. 3 UOBR. Ponadto art. 66 ust. 4 UOBR wskazuje, że kluczowy biegły rewident i firma audytorska przeznaczają wystarczającą ilość czasu i odpowiednie zasoby w celu właściwej realizacji badania. Z przeprowadzonych analiz wynika, że 88 firm audytorskich ma biegłych rewidentów, którzy wykonali powyżej 50 usług w ciągu roku (łącznie 194 takich biegłych). To oznacza, że tacy biegli rewidenci mogli przeznaczyć na badanie sprawozdania finansowego jedynie kilka dni roboczych (a w niektórych przypadkach nawet poniżej 1 dnia). Zjawisko to będzie podlegało szczególnemu nadzorowi jako potencjalnie zagrażające prawidłowości wydanej opinii o badaniu sprawozdania finansowego.

Este texto visa a abordar o tema do Ministério Público, sua estrutura, suas funções e suas prerrogativas em face do constitucionalismo contemporâneo, analisando os graus de sujeição ou autonomia dessa instituição em frente ao mundo político e aos Poderes do Estado nos diferentes ordenamentos jurídicos. Para tanto, faz-se uso das ferramentas proporcionadas pelo Direito Constitucional Comparado, o qual permite que a questão seja contemplada em seu conjunto, contrastando o nível de legitimidade e de eficácia de cada sistema e contribuindo para a construção de um modelo de Ministério Público em consonância com o Estado Democrático de Direito.

In the financial reporting ecosystem, external auditors are important players entrusted with providing quality audits in order to uphold public confidence in audited financial statements. Many mechanisms have been adopted in an effort to regulate external auditors in order to maintain quality audit practices, including the adoption of International Standards on Quality Control 1 (ISQC 1) and the International Standards on Quality Control for Audits of Historical Financial Information (ISA 220). To complement the standards that govern audit quality, audit oversight functions are introduced as a means of auditing the auditors. The present study examines the features, characteristics and best practices of selected audit oversight bodies in the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. A content analysis of annual reports from oversight bodies in the aforementioned countries was undertaken. The analysis reveals contrasting practices in several areas including membership registration and transparency in the disclosure and reporting of the audit firms under sanctions. Based on these findings, the best practices adopted by the selected audit oversight bodies can be set as a benchmark for other countries in learning the pathway to improve financial reporting.

The central point of this paper is to present the results of comparative meta-analysis concerning the impact of the interplay between formal and informal institutions in the corporate governance and independence of audit firms of Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs). The paper focuses on the values of the national Financial Audit Law and national auditors’ code of ethics of CEECs, as well as on independence, professional scepticism, non-audit services, audit fees, mandatory audit firm rotation and joint carrying out of statutory financial audit. The main subject of interest concerns two research areas: the character of the relationship between formal and informal institutions, as well as whether the interplay between them is relevant to corporate governance and independence of audit firms of CEECs.

Sumário: I. Introdução; 2. A instituição do controle governamental no Brasil e o modelo de contas; 3. As disfunções do modelo; 4. Conclusão. Palavras~chave: tomada de contas; prestação de contas; auditoria governamental; controle interno; controle externo. Este artigo analisa o modelo de verificação das contas dos administradores públicos brasileiros-desde a chamada auditoria governamental, levada a efeito pelos órgãos de controle interno dos poderes Executivo, Legislativo e Judiciário, até o julgamento pelo controle externo, de responsabilidade do Legislativo e com o apoio do Tribunal de Contas-, cujos resultados têm sido insatisfatórios. O artigo aponta as prováveis causas: o fato de o modelo estar voltado para ações passadas, ao invés de atuar no presente, ainda passível de correções; a falta de análises prévias à aplicação modelo, em especial a econômica, financeira, a de risco e a da relação custo/benefício entre o próprio controle e seus resultados; a falta de comunicação, no âmbito da administração pública, entre os subsistemas de controle e de planejamento. lhe Brazilian accounlability model-for a rationalizalion of lhe process This paper analyzes the Brazilian accountability system-from the socalled public auditing undertaken by the internai controls of the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary branches, to the judgement by the exernal control, represented by the Legislative with the Federal Court of Accounts' support-and its unsatisfactory results. The paper points out the probable causes: the act that the system is more concerned about the past actions than about the present ones, which could be corrected; the absence of analyses of the model (especially economic, financiai, risk, and cost/benefit analyzes) before it is put into effect; the lack of communication between the planning and controllevels of the public administration. * Artigo recebido em fev. e aceito em jun. 1977. ** Analista de finanças e controle externo do Tribunal de Contas da União e professor da Associação de Ensino Unificado do Distrito Federal.

Este trabalho se constitui em um estudo sobre a efetividade de ações do Tribunal de Contas do Estado de Pernambuco, num momento histórico em que as instituições públicas se voltam para a satisfação das necessidades do cidadão. O objetivo principal consiste em analisar como se caracterizam a efetividade formal e a desejada e identificar qual a relação destas com o ambiente institucional e com as estruturas de poder do Tribunal de Contas do Estado de Pernambuco (TCE-PE). A pesquisa realizada é de natureza qualitativa e os dados foram coletados por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas, tanto no âmbito do TCE-PE como no de órgãos representativos da sociedade civil organizada que com ele interagem. Os dados obtidos e a análise realizada com base na fundamentação teórica selecionada indicam que existe de fato uma "efetividade desejada" e que entre a efetividade formal e a desejada há lacunas que são explicadas pelas características do ambiente institucional e pelos arranjos de p...

Os tribunais de contas brasileiros possuem a certidão de batismo baiana. A ideia de sua instituição no país possui origem remota no projeto de um ministro baiano, Manuel Alves Branco, ministro da Fazenda no Império, e sua origem próxima na atuação decisiva de outro grande nome da história da Bahia e do Brasil, cujo centenário de falecimento celebramos agora em 2023: Rui Barbosa, o primeiro ministro da Fazenda da República. Recordar os vínculos de Rui com a história dos tribunais de contas no país é exercício importante para avaliar o presente e outros futuros possíveis em matéria de controle administrativo das despesas públicas.//

The Brazilian audit courts have a Bahian baptismal certificate. The idea for their institution in the country has a remote origin in the project of a Bahian minister, Manuel Alves Branco, Minister of Finance in the Empire, and its close origin in the decisive action of another great name in the history of Bahia and Brazil, whose centenary of death we celebrate now in 2023: Rui Barbosa, the first Minister of Finance of the Republic. Recalling the links between Rui and the history of audit courts in the country is an important exercise for assessing the present and other possible futures in the field of administrative control of public spending.

Can opportunities for undergoing voluntary oversight improve bureaucratic motivation and effort? Drawing on insights from the social sciences, we argue that voluntary oversight increases front-line bureaucrats’ sense of autonomy and competence, and may therefore increase their motivation and effort. Partnering with a provincial auditing body in Argentina, we implement an encouragement design in which school principals are invited to receive a voluntary audit of a publicly funded school meal program. We employ a two-level randomization, in which regions are first randomly assigned to a higher or lower rate of invitations, and then schools within regions are randomly assigned to treatment or control. We find divergent effects of treatment based on the density of treatment; in the group of regions assigned to the lower rate of invitations, school principals assigned to treatment report increased motivation and a decrease in school closings. In contrast, in the group of regions assigned to the higher rate of invitations, we observe the opposite effect. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork, we speculate that a higher rate of invitations may generate pressure to accept the invitation and thereby undermine any positive effects of volunteering. Our results suggest the promise of voluntary audits as well as the need for further research on the conditions under which voluntary oversight may have differing consequences for bureaucratic effort and motivation.

A administracao publica gerencial ou gerencialismo e um modelo pos-burocratico que impulsiona a gestao da administracao publica baseada em valores como eficiencia e eficacia. Dentre as novas praticas de gestao, destaca-se o processo de descentralizacao das politicas e programas de governo, atraves da transferencia de recursos a Estados e Municipios, em alinhamento com a necessidade de desburocratizacao da maquina administrativa e de eficiencia alocativa. Entretanto, para que haja legitimidade e economicidade da atividade publica, e necessario o controle na gestao dos recursos repassados. Nesse contexto, destaca-se com singular importância a Tomada de Contas Especial, que se caracteriza como um processo administrativo formalizado, com vistas a apurar responsabilidade por ocorrencia de dano a administracao publica federal. Neste artigo objetiva-se compreender o processo de tomada de contas especial e suas implicacoes, no contexto das transferencias de recursos, como um elemento de con...

In the financial reporting ecosystem, external auditors are important players entrusted with providing quality audits in order to uphold public confidence in audited financial statements. Many mechanisms have been adopted in an effort to regulate external auditors in order to maintain quality audit practices, including the adoption of International Standards on Quality Control 1 (ISQC 1) and the International Standards on Quality Control for Audits of Historical Financial Information (ISA 220). To complement the standards that govern audit quality, audit oversight functions are introduced as a means of auditing the auditors. The present study examines the features, characteristics and best practices of selected audit oversight bodies in the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. A content analysis of annual reports from oversight bodies in the aforementioned countries was undertaken. The analysis reveals contrasting practices in several areas including membership registration and transparency in the disclosure and reporting of the audit firms under sanctions. Based on these findings, the best practices adopted by the selected audit oversight bodies can be set as a benchmark for other countries in learning the pathway to improve financial reporting.

O controle sobre a Administração Pública tem como principal atribuição garantir que os recursos sejam aplicados nas áreas previamente estabelecidas, em obediência aos preceitos legais que regem a atuação dos gestores e demais agentes públicos. Neste artigo aborda-se o contexto histórico em que surgiram os primeiros sinais do controle exercido sobre as contas públicas no Brasil, apresentando a linha do tempo da criação do Tribunal de Contas da União, órgão de controle externo do Governo Federal, evidenciando as principais mudanças institucionais ocorridas no decorrer da sua evolução e referendadas pelos dispositivos constitucionais vigentes em cada período histórico, demonstrando a importância do controle para a eficiência e eficácia administrativa. Os órgãos de controle prestam relevante contribuição para o aperfeiçoamento da gestão pública, tendo a missão de acompanhar e fiscalizar a aplicação dos recursos públicos, na medida em que almejam garantir o fiel cumprimento das normas que norteiam a atuação dos gestores.

The article aims to highlight the importance of reporting of subsequent events in financial statements, the factors that influence their reporting and the implication in statutory audit. The purpose of the article is to research the theoretical and legal basis which regulates the accounting and audit of subsequent events, but also research practical cases on this subject. The case study was based on the study of the 62 companies, listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, from which were analyzed the financial statements and the independent auditor"s reports, grouping the subsequent events which was found, depending on their type and the domain in which that company operates, and were compared the types of events that occurred in each domain of activity. From empirical research resulted that reporting of subsequent events can be influenced by various factors such as: the auditor"s category, the audit opinion, the performance and the size of company. The main conclusion which resulted from the study case is that the subsequent events are more frequent presented in financial statements of an entity, influencing in some cases the auditor"s opinion related to these financial statements.

The paper mainly approaches the social audit, an insufficiently developed field in our country. The social audit concept is defined in Romania by the Social Assistance Law no. 292/2011 and its application is limited to this scope. At international level, the concept has a much wider application area. The research methodology is a qualitative one. The objectives of the paper consist in the theoretical development of the social audit concept: the definition of the social audit, the description of the stages and the goals of this process, the identification of the connections between sustainable development, corporate social responsibility and social audit, the performance of a comparative analysis between the social audit, the financial audit and the internal audit, the explanation of the advantages of applying the social audit in the business environment, in social institutions and in the public administration, the illustration of qualitative and quantitative indicators that can be employed in social audit engagements, as well as the proposal of an application model of the social audit in Romania.

Neste trabalho é analisado o atual modelo de controle externo exercido pelas cortes de contas, inclusive da experiência internacional, assim como são examinadas as proposições legislativas que tramitam sobre o tema. Com este intuito, o presente estudo discorrerá sobre:

The central point of this paper is to present the results of comparative meta-analysis concerning the impact of the interplay between formal and informal institutions in the corporate governance and independence of audit firms of Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs). The paper focuses on the values of the national Financial Audit Law and national auditors’ code of ethics of CEECs, as well as on independence, professional scepticism, non-audit services, audit fees, mandatory audit firm rotation and joint carrying out of statutory financial audit. The main subject of interest concerns two research areas: the character of the relationship between formal and informal institutions, as well as whether the interplay between them is relevant to corporate governance and independence of audit firms of CEECs.

O texto explora a questão dos controles administrativos na Itália, tanto noque se refere aos controles internos quanto no que se refere aos controles externos. O autor aponta a debilidade dos controles internos, em particular no tocante aos controles de gestão, e analisa o tipo mais difundido de controle externo na ordenação italiana, os controles preventivos de legitimidade, que na sua opinião deveriam ser substituídos pelos controles sucessivos sobre a atividade ou sobre a gestão administrativas. O texto fala ainda da evolução das relações entre o Tribunal de Contas e o Parlamento, das tendências recentes de transformação na área de controle, incluindo aspectos relativos à reforma constitucional e à União Européia, e das novidades legislativas surgidas em 1993 e 1994.

The general objective of the study is to examine how public policy evaluation processes are structured and institutionalized in the Executive and Legislative Branches. To this end, the methodology of a comparative case study was used. Through this comparison, we aimed to examine how two competing powers conduct an assessment of public policies in
Brazil, each in its own way. The results show that in both assessment experiences there are similarities in some aspects and asymmetries in others. It was found that the assessments carried out by the Legislative Branch focus more on policies with clear objectives of accountability of the Executive. On the other hand, the assessments carried out by the
Executive Branch are more focused on controlling public spending by changing the design and implementation of public policies.

O controle externo, função do Poder Legislativo, é exercido com o auxílio de outras entidades que podem ser tanto os Tribunais de Contas como as Auditorias ou Controladorias-Gerais. Tendo isso em vista, este artigo possui o objetivo de descrever os sistemas de controle externo mais utilizados no mundo atualmente – o Anglo-Saxônico e o Latino Americano – e confrontá-los, a fim de explicitar as suas peculiaridades e traçar um paralelo entre as sistemáticas utilizadas no Brasil, nos Estados Unidos e na Inglaterra. Antes, contudo, necessitou-se discorrer sobre quais as espécies de controle existentes e alicerçar o entendimento sobre o controle externo, tema central deste estudo. A pesquisa bibliográfica e em sítios virtuais foi a ferramenta que impulsionou a realização do estudo que discorre sobre a realidade nas três nações escolhidas. O resultado da pesquisa demonstra que cada modelo possui vantagens e deficiências, mas que cabe a cada País escolher aquele que seja mais adequado para ...

O artigo constrói uma significação para o termo “ativismo de contas” e analisa se o Tribunal de Contas da União (TCU) pratica condutas que se enquadram nessa terminologia. O estudo acerca do comportamento do TCU mostra-se fundamental, tendo em vista que se trata de órgão que, ao controlar a atividade administrativa que gera gastos públicos diretos, influencia os rumos da condução da coisa pública. A pesquisa realizada é de cunho bibliográfico e documental (Acórdãos do TCU), possuindo uma abordagem indutiva, sendo de natureza descritiva e exploratória quanto aos fins. Conclui-se que ativismo de contas é o comportamento dos Tribunais de Contas que, a pretexto de se mostrarem proativos ou de serem encarados como concretizados de direitos fundamentais ou controladores de políticas públicas, acabam por exercer suas atribuições em desconformidade com o que permite o texto constitucional e infraconstitucional, demonstrando a subjetividade na tomada de decisões por seus membros. Nesses term...

Auditor Chefe -AUDIN da Universidade Federal de Rondônia, com Mestrado em Administração pela mesma Instituição. Este estudo tem como objetivo evidenciar os pontos cegos nas abordagens: subordinação, atribuições, competências, contratação e qualificação dos servidores da Unidade de Controle MORENO, G. C. De L. et al. Abordagens ao ponto cego da unidade de controle interno nos poderes municipais do Estado de Rondônia. Revista Unemat de Contabilidade, 2017. v. 6, n. 11. 154 Interno (UCI), com a perspectiva de restringi-los, e consequentemente, melhorar o exercício pleno do controle, fundamentado nos princípios da eficaz administração pública. Espera-se contribuir para a identificação de possíveis falhas originadas pela não restrição às atividades. A coleta de dados ocorreu em dez municípios do Estado de Rondônia, com consulta aos sites das prefeituras e câmaras municipais, visita a algumas unidades, além de solicitação por e-mail dos regulamentos legais criados para a institucionalização da UCI. Consecutivamente foram examinados esses regulamentos. Os resultados mostram que a UCI, no que se refere às abordagens evidenciadas, apresentam critérios vulneráveis para a prática do controle. Palavras-chave: Unidade de Controle Interno; Abordagens ao ponto cego; Controle.

Clerilei Bier a *; Nério Amboni a ; Celso Guerini b A escalada de casos de malversação de dinheiros públicos, a par de provocar insatisfação e a mais contundente crítica de todos os setores da coletividade, faz emergir também avaliações sobre a eficiência e a eficácia dos Tribunais de Contas na apuração de denúncias que lhe são demandadas por cidadãos, partidos políticos, associações e sindicatos. É notório que os Tribunais de Contas ainda não se firmaram como uma das instituições de vanguarda na desincumbência desta complexa, porém indispensável tarefa, em prol da salvaguarda dos interesses do bem comum e combate às recorrentes práticas de diferentes formas de gestões públicas fraudulentas. Este artigo propõe-se a apresentar e a examinar os níveis de eficácia obtidos pelo Tribunal de Contas do Estado de Santa Catarina, em processos de denúncias que lhe foram endereçados no período de 2000 a 2008, tendo por base pesquisa levada a efeito na dissertação de mestrado profissionalizante da Universidade do Estado de Santa Catariana.

O estudo da accountability do setor público vincula-se, em sentido amplo, ao conhecimento das informações relevantes para tomar decisões. O governo democrático deveria ser passível de fiscalização para assegurar sua integridade, desempenho e representatividade. Dessa maneira, existe a necessidade de o próprio governo prover informações úteis e relevantes para o exercício da accountability. Da mesma forma, o governo é responsável por agir de forma econômica, eficiente e eficaz na consecução dos objetivos perseguidos pelos cidadãos e seus representantes eleitos. Aqueles que formulam, selecionam e implementam políticas públicas necessitam de informações relevantes para o planejamento, o controle e a condução das funções governamentais. A relevância da matéria determinou explicitar a prestação de contas da administração pública direta e indireta como um dos princípios constitucionais. Dessa maneira, o princípio da autonomia das entidades federativas cede ante a falta de cumprimento da a...

O artigo busca investigar se o Tribunal de Contas da União (TCU) pode ser enxergado ou não como um órgão político. Há uma divergência entre a adjetivação que se confere ao TCU, ora sendo denominado de órgão técnico, ora de órgão político. O trabalho tem por objetivo investigar o caráter político do Tribunal, abordando-se três aspectos diferenciados: a composição dos membros do TCU; a função exercida pela Corte; a influência externa sofrida sobre suas atribuições e a exercida pelo TCU nos processos legislativos. Para a realização do paper, utiliza-se o método de abordagem indutivo, possuindo natureza descritiva e exploratória quanto aos fins e bibliográfica e documental em relação aos meios. Ao final, observa-se que a compreensão do TCU como órgão político depende justamente do critério utilizado. Deste modo, conclui-se que: a) no que tange ao corpo de Ministros do TCU, a Constituição não impede, tampouco fomenta que o Tribunal figure como político; contudo, a prática demonstra que s...

Título: As lógicas conflitantes no Tribunal de Contas e o enfraquecimento de sua relevância social Tese apresentada à Faculdade de Economia, Administração e Contabilidade de Ribeirão Preto para obtenção do título de Doutor em Ciências no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Controladoria e Contabilidade.

A auditoria de desempenho 1 vem sendo rapidamente aceita como um tipo de atividade profissional de revisão governamental ex-post. Essa categoria envolve tanto alguns tipos familiares de trabalhos de revisão, como as auditorias de eficiência e as de efetividade, quanto formas menos conhecidas, como as auditorias de informação, geradas pelos sistemas de gerenciamento de desempenho. O surgimento dessa nova categoria no vocabulário da administração pública indica que o processo de demarcação de um novo domínio da atividade burocrática está em andamento. A teoria sociológica neo-institucionalista (Meyer e Rowan, 1991) sugere que, à medida que a auditoria de desempenho se tornar mais institucionalizada, o nível dessa atividade deve aumentar, provavelmente seguido pela criação de subdivisões distintas ou pela expansão das linhas de produto. São várias as organizações que desenvolvem e realizam trabalhos de auditoria de desempenho. No Reino Unido, pode-se citar a Audit Comission for England and Wales (Comissão de Auditoria para a Inglaterra e País de Gales), cuja jurisdição inclui o governo municipal, o Serviço Nacional de Saúde e a polícia; o National Audit Office (NAO), cuja jurisdição compreende o restante do governo central; e uma gama de inspetorias de setores ou órgãos específicos em rápida expansão, como o Office of Standards in Education (Escritório de Normas para a Educação-Hood e Scott, 1996). Nos Estados Unidos da América do Norte (EUA), entre as entidades que conduzem trabalhos de auditoria de desempenho, pode-se destacar os Office of Inspectors General (Escritórios dos Inspetores Gerais) e o General Accounting Office-GAO (Escritório do Auditor-Geral-Trodden, 1995; Walsh, 1996). Assim, a racionalização, a produção e a expansão nessa área de estudo podem ser observadas, até o Revista do Serviço Público

Valéria Cristina Gomes Ribeiro é servidora do Tribunal de Contas da União, graduada em Direito pela Faculdade de Direito da Alta Paulista e pós-graduada em Políticas Públicas pela Universidade de Brasília (UnB). Macleuler Costa Lima é servidor do Tribunal de Contas da União, graduado e mestre em Relações Internacionais pela Universidade de Brasília (UnB) 1. Valéria Cristina Gomes Ribeiro e Macleuler Costa Lima As atividades de cooperação entre os tribunais de contas lusófonos têm-se desenvolvido de forma bastante profícua a partir da assinatura, em 1991, do Acordo Bilateral de Cooperação Técnica, Científica e Cultural na área de controle e fiscalização – pelo Tribunal de Contas da União e pelo Tribunal de Contas de Portugal – e também em decorrência da aprovação do Memorandum de Entendimentos entre as sete Cortes de Contas Lusófonas, em 1995. Em 2001, foi oficialmente criada a Organização das Instituições Supremas de Controle da Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa (OISC/CPLP)...

O objetivo dessa pesquisa e identificar a percepcao dos Auditores Federais do Controle Externo (AUFC) sobre a estrutura funcional, administrativa e financeira da instituicao (TCU), a qual e responsavel pelo controle externo (junto ao Poder Legislativo). A metodologia utilizada foi a aplicacao de questionario, por meio eletronico, com uma amostra nao probabilistica, com a participacao de Auditores de algumas secretarias regionais do controle externo. Apos a coleta de dados, procedeu-se uma analise, predominantemente, qualitativa sobre os resultados obtidos. Pode-se observar que na percepcao dos Auditores que compuseram a amostra, a Corte de Contas brasileira possui significativa independencia institucional reconhecida em lei e demais normas que regem o TCU. Porem, os mesmo evidenciaram que a forma atual de escolha dos ministros, a existencia de pressoes externas, como influencia politica, e o quadro limitado de Auditores, nas Secretarias de Controle Externo (SECEX), afeta a autonomia...