The Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) issued Exposure Drafts of proposed statements for accounting and financial reporting by employers for Post-employment Benefit Plans Other Than Pension Plans (OPEB) in February 2003. In September, they extended the date when the final statement would be issued from December 2003 to June 2004.

OPEB refers to post-employment benefits other than pension benefits and includes:

• Post-employment healthcare benefits
• Other types of post-employment benefits not covered in a pension plan; such as life insurance, long-term care and disability

The revised effective dates for implementation of the statement's standards for an employer depend on the total annual revenue of the employer:

The effective date for implementation is the fiscal year prior to the year of implementation for the largest employer.

GASB will be encouraging earlier compliance.

These dates may seem to be a long way out, but we suggest that our clients start to review their current program:

• Identify potential OPEB benefits.
• Establish procedures to track the cost of the current OPEB benefits.
• Review potential actuarial liabilities.
• Establish policy for funding OPEB benefits.
• Review the GASB statement with your auditor.
• Review the potential effect on your bond ratings.
• Obtain legal or State's attorney opinion as to what the changes you may make to program for existing employees under the State's constitution.