* Begins with a thorough exploration of the environment and objectives of government and not-for-profit organizations, how they differ from businesses, and how and why the environment and objectives affect the reporting and interpretation of accounting information.

* Discusses the reasons for and advantages and limitations of accounting standards throughout the text.

* Includes problems that give student the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with recording and reporting accounting information, and explore the purpose of standards and the meaning and usefulness of reported information.

* Includes a full chapter on financial analysis for governments and not-for-profit organizations-a topic generally not included in accounting texts.

* Discusses the basic financial statements of Orlando, Florida. Orlando was an early adopter of Statement No. 34 and has now prepared three annual reports under the new standards. Orlando's financial report also is available on the Internet.

* Each of the chapters on government accounting includes questions designed to help students find information related to the chapter topics and understand the meaning of that information.