The Journal of Accounting and Management, Vol 6, No 3 (2016)

Abstract

This paper aims to identify and quantify different means of improving performance management in the public sector by examining the reporting practices of local governments. It emphasizes the public interest in reporting and the need to provide relevant and meaningful information to stakeholders. For this purpose, the research methodology uses the accountability disclosure framework combined with the Balanced Scorecard structure to assess the quality of online reporting, throughout an index designed by accessing the different sections of websites and the annual reports. A linear regression analysis was performed, searching for a relationship between the accountability index developed and various external factors. The empirical results show medium disclosure levels among local government websites, the scores reached exposing considerable fluctuation in the quality of disclosure. Also, we confirm that good practices of higher online transparency could improve administrative efficiency, increase trust in local government, and ultimately promote democratic governance. This paper has a high level of originality by proving a model of disclosure for increasing performance reporting of local governments to meet the need for greater accountability, thus being a support for improvements of digital transparency.