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The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is offering grants of $10,000 to $20,000 for research on the measurement and reporting of severe financial stress in state and local governments.

The GASB is seeking proposals for research that (1) demonstrates reliable methods for identifying when a government is exposed to severe financial stress and (2) provides a model for developing procedures that governments of various types and sizes – either taxing or business-type entities – could realistically perform. Preference will be given to proposals that feature one or more of the following:

  • A random sample that includes small, medium, and large governments, based on annual revenue
  • An approach to assessing financial stress unlike the existing research described above—for instance, identifying severe financial stress by examining changes over time in relevant indicators
  • Financial indicators that are complemented by relevant economic, demographic, or non financial measures.

The Request for Research can be viewed by clicking here. Questions regarding the request for research funding, please contact Dean Mead, GASB Senior Research Manager, at (203) 956-5294 or dmmead@gasb.org. The deadline for submitting a proposal is September 30, 2020.