Bureau of Economic Analysis
	Information on BEA Methodology
	Government Transactions (MP-5)

Major changes have been made to the definitions and classifications used to measure the Government sector after Government Transactions (NIPA Methodology Paper Series MP-5), was published in 1988. These major changes include the following:

• the recognition of government investment and a new methodology for calculating depreciation,
• enterprise definition changes,
• treatment of Commodity Credit Corporation loans,
• deposit insurance changes,
• the redefinition of government sales and personal nontaxes,
• new featured measures of chain output and prices,
• recognition of software as fixed investment,
• reclassification of certain transactions as capital transfers,
• a new presentation of government spending by function, and
• reclassification of government employee retirement programs.

For a discussion of these changes, see the following Survey of Current Business articles:

1. "The Comprehensive Revision of the U.S. National Income and Product Accounts: A Review of Revisions and Major Statistical Changes," December 1991 (PDF).
2. "Preview of the Comprehensive Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts: BEA's New Featured Measures of Output and Prices," July 1995 (PDF or HTML).
3. "Preview of the Comprehensive Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts: Recognition of Government Investment and Incorporation of a New Methodology for Calculating Depreciation," September 1995 (PDF or HTML)
4. "Preview of the Comprehensive Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts: New and Redesigned Tables," October 1995 (PDF or HTML).
5. "A Preview of the 1999 Comprehensive Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts: Definitional and Classificational Changes," August 1999 (PDF or HTML).
6. "Government Spending by Function: A New Presentation," June 2000 (PDF or HTML).

Click here to access Government Transactions (NIPA Methodology Paper Series MP-5).

Updated: June 12, 2001