Summary of Statement No. 87
Statement No. 87
Leases
(Issued 06/17)
The objective of this Statement is to better meet the information needs of financial statement users by improving accounting and financial reporting for leases by governments. This Statement increases the usefulness of governments’ financial statements by requiring recognition of certain lease assets and liabilities for leases that previously were classified as operating leases and recognized as inflows of resources or outflows of resources based on the payment provisions of the contract. It establishes a single model for lease accounting based on the foundational principle that leases are financings of the right to use an underlying asset. Under this Statement, a lessee is required to recognize a lease liability and an intangible right-to-use lease asset, and a lessor is required to recognize a lease receivable and a deferred inflow of resources, thereby enhancing the relevance and consistency of information about governments’ leasing activities.
Definition of a Lease
A lease is defined as a contract that conveys control of the right to use another entity’s nonfinancial asset (the underlying asset) as specified in the contract for a period of time in an exchange or exchange-like transaction. Examples of nonfinancial assets include buildings, land, vehicles, and equipment. Any contract that meets this definition should be accounted for under the leases guidance, unless specifically excluded in this Statement.
Lease Term
The lease term is defined as the period during which a lessee has a noncancelable right to use an underlying asset, plus the following periods, if applicable:
- Periods covered by a lessee’s option to extend the lease if it is reasonably certain, based on all relevant factors, that the lessee will exercise that option
- Periods covered by a lessee’s option to terminate the lease if it is reasonably certain, based on all relevant factors, that the lessee will not exercise that option
- Periods covered by a lessor’s option to extend the lease if it is reasonably certain, based on all relevant factors, that the lessor will exercise that option
- Periods covered by a lessor’s option to terminate the lease if it is reasonably certain, based on all relevant factors, that the lessor will not exercise that option.
Lessees and lessors should reassess the lease term only if one or more of the following occur:
- The lessee or lessor elects to exercise an option even though it was previously determined that it was reasonably certain that the lessee or lessor would not exercise that option.
- The lessee or lessor elects not to exercise an option even though it was previously determined that it was reasonably certain that the lessee or lessor would exercise that option.
- An event specified in the lease contract that requires an extension or termination of the lease takes place.
A short-term lease is defined as a lease that, at the commencement of the lease term, has a maximum possible term under the lease contract of 12 months (or less), including any options to extend, regardless of their probability of being exercised. Lessees and lessors should recognize short-term lease payments as outflows of resources or inflows of resources, respectively, based on the payment provisions of the lease contract.
Lessee Accounting
A lessee should recognize a lease liability and a lease asset at the commencement of the lease term, unless the lease is a short-term lease or it transfers ownership of the underlying asset. The lease liability should be measured at the present value of payments expected to be made during the lease term (less any lease incentives). The lease asset should be measured at the amount of the initial measurement of the lease liability, plus any payments made to the lessor at or before the commencement of the lease term and certain direct costs.
A lessee should reduce the lease liability as payments are made and recognize an outflow of resources (for example, expense) for interest on the liability. The lessee should amortize the lease asset in a systematic and rational manner over the shorter of the lease term or the useful life of the underlying asset. The notes to financial statements should include a description of leasing arrangements, the amount of lease assets recognized, and a schedule of future lease payments to be made.
Lessor Accounting
A lessor should recognize a lease receivable and a deferred inflow of resources at the commencement of the lease term, with certain exceptions for leases of assets held as investments, certain regulated leases, short-term leases, and leases that transfer ownership of the underlying asset. A lessor should not derecognize the asset underlying the lease. The lease receivable should be measured at the present value of lease payments expected to be received during the lease term. The deferred inflow of resources should be measured at the value of the lease receivable plus any payments received at or before the commencement of the lease term that relate to future periods.
A lessor should recognize interest revenue on the lease receivable and an inflow of resources (for example, revenue) from the deferred inflows of resources in a systematic and rational manner over the term of the lease. The notes to financial statements should include a description of leasing arrangements and the total amount of inflows of resources recognized from leases.
Contracts with Multiple Components and Contract Combinations
Generally, a government should account for the lease and nonlease components of a lease as separate contracts. If a lease involves multiple underlying assets, lessees and lessors in certain cases should account for each underlying asset as a separate lease contract. To allocate the contract price to different components, lessees and lessors should use contract prices for individual components as long as they do not appear to be unreasonable based on professional judgment, or use professional judgment to determine their best estimate if there are no stated prices or if stated prices appear to be unreasonable. If determining a best estimate is not practicable, multiple components in a lease contract should be accounted for as a single lease unit. Contracts that are entered into at or near the same time with the same counterparty and that meet certain criteria should be considered part of the same lease contract and should be evaluated in accordance with the guidance for contracts with multiple components.
Lease Modifications and Terminations
An amendment to a lease contract should be considered a lease modification, unless the lessee’s right to use the underlying asset decreases, in which case it would be a partial or full lease termination. A lease termination should be accounted for by reducing the carrying values of the lease liability and lease asset by a lessee, or the lease receivable and deferred inflows of resources by the lessor, with any difference being recognized as a gain or loss. A lease modification that does not qualify as a separate lease should be accounted for by remeasuring the lease liability and adjusting the related lease asset by a lessee and remeasuring the lease receivable and adjusting the related deferred inflows of resources by a lessor.
Subleases and Leaseback Transactions
Subleases should be treated as transactions separate from the original lease. The original lessee that becomes the lessor in a sublease should account for the original lease and the sublease as separate transactions, as a lessee and lessor, respectively.
A transaction qualifies for sale-leaseback accounting only if it includes a sale. Otherwise, it is a borrowing. The sale and lease portions of a transaction should be accounted for as separate sale and lease transactions, except that any difference between the carrying value of the capital asset that was sold and the net proceeds from the sale should be reported as a deferred inflow of resources or a deferred outflow of resources and recognized over the term of the lease.
A lease-leaseback transaction should be accounted for as a net transaction. The gross amounts of each portion of the transaction should be disclosed.
Effective Date and Transition
The requirements of this Statement are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019 [June 15, 2021], and all reporting periods thereafter. Earlier application is encouraged.
Leases should be recognized and measured using the facts and circumstances that exist at the beginning of the period of implementation (or, if applied to earlier periods, the beginning of the earliest period restated). However, lessors should not restate the assets underlying their existing sales-type or direct financing leases. Any residual assets for those leases become the carrying values of the underlying assets.
How the Changes in This Statement Will Improve Accounting and Financial Reporting
This Statement will increase the usefulness of governments’ financial statements by requiring reporting of certain lease liabilities that currently are not reported. It will enhance comparability of financial statements among governments by requiring lessees and lessors to report leases under a single model. This Statement also will enhance the decision-usefulness of the information provided to financial statement users by requiring notes to financial statements related to the timing, significance, and purpose of a government’s leasing arrangements.
How the Board Considered Costs and Benefits in the Development of This Statement
One of the principles guiding the Board’s setting of standards for accounting and financial reporting is the assessment of expected benefits and perceived costs. The Board strives to determine that its standards address significant user needs and that the costs incurred through the application of its standards, compared with possible alternatives, are justified when compared to the expected overall public benefit. The Board considered the costs of both the individual provisions in this Statement and the Statement as a whole. The Board is cognizant that the costs of implementing the changes required by this Statement may be significant. However, the Board believes that the expected benefits that will result from the information provided through implementation of this Statement, both initially and on an ongoing basis, are significant.
To reduce the cost of implementation, this Statement includes an exception for short-term leases, as described above, and exceptions for contracts that transfer ownership, leases of assets that are investments, and certain regulated leases. In response to stakeholder feedback, this Statement excludes supply contracts and leases of inventory. In addition, this Statement includes cost-reducing provisions regarding reassessment of the lease term, requiring governments to report multiple-component contracts as a single lease unit when determining a best estimate for allocating the contract price to individual components is not practicable, and not requiring lessors to derecognize underlying assets, among other provisions.
Unless otherwise specified, pronouncements of the GASB apply to financial reports of all state and local governmental entities, including general purpose governments; public benefit corporations and authorities; public employee retirement systems; and public utilities, hospitals and other healthcare providers, and colleges and universities. Paragraph 3 discusses the applicability of this Statement.