Financial Report of the U.S. Government: Balance Sheets

Assets included on the balance sheets are government resources that remain available to meet future needs. The most significant assets that are reported on the balance sheets are loans receivable; property, plant, and equipment; inventories and related property; and cash or other monetary assets. There are, however, other significant resources available to the government that extend beyond the assets presented in these Balance Sheets. Those resources include Stewardship Land and Heritage Assets in addition to the government's sovereign powers to tax and set monetary policy.

Liabilities are obligations of the government resulting from prior actions that will require financial resources. The most significant liabilities reported on the balance sheets are federal debt securities held by the public and accrued interest, and federal employee and veteran benefits payable. Liabilities also include environmental and disposal liabilities, benefits due and payable, as well as insurance and guarantee program liabilities. As with reported assets, the government's responsibilities, policy commitments, and contingencies are much broader than these reported balance sheet liabilities.

Due to its sovereign power to tax and borrow, and the country's wide economic base, the government has unique access to financial resources through generating tax revenues and issuing federal debt securities. This provides the government with the ability to meet present obligations and those that are anticipated from future operations and are not reflected in net position. The net position is the residual difference between assets and liabilities and is the cumulative results of operations since inception. The net position for funds from dedicated collections is shown in Statement of Operations and Changes in Net Position.