Bahamas
Financial Administration and Audit Act 2010
Financial Administration and Audit Act 2010 [primary PFM; text inaccessible — inferred from Westminster model + secondary sources] + Constitution of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas 1973 Art. 136 [Auditor General — partially confirmed via secondary sources]
The Bahamas operates a Westminster-model public finance framework. The Financial Administration and Audit Act 2010 (FAAA 2010) is the primary statute governing the Consolidated Fund, appropriation, departmental financial reporting, and the Auditor General's mandate. The Auditor General is established as a constitutionally independent officer under Article 136 of the 1973 Constitution and audits all public accounts. The fiscal year runs 1 July to 30 June; the annual budget is presented to Parliament in May (approximately 60 days before the fiscal year start). The Bahamas has no IBP Open Budget Survey data, no publicly available PEFA assessments (four assessments exist but are all non-public), and no published IMF Fiscal Transparency Evaluation. Secondary sources confirm the Westminster structural framework, but most statutory detail is unconfirmable due to inaccessible government websites (finance.gov.bs TLS error; laws.bahamas.gov.bs blank). BSD is pegged 1:1 to the USD.
Transparency Requirements
Budget Publicationmax 12 pts
| Budget publication required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Budget published online | ✓ Yes |
| Budget publication timeline | 60 days before fiscal year |
| Machine-readable budget format | No |
| Draft budget required before adoption | — |
Expenditure Disclosuremax 12 pts
| Expenditure disclosure required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Expenditure granularity | department |
| Public expenditure portal required | No |
| Expenditure reporting frequency | annual |
Independent Auditmax 12 pts
| Audit required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Auditor independent of entity | ✓ Yes |
| Auditor selection method | appointed independent |
| Audit frequency | annual |
| Audit reports public | ✓ Yes |
| Audit scope | financial performance |
Contract & Procurementmax 10 pts
| Public bidding required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Contract publication required | ✓ Yes |
| Bid award disclosure | ✓ Yes |
| Beneficial ownership disclosure | No |
Debt & Liability Disclosuremax 10 pts
| Debt disclosure required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Pension liability disclosure | — |
| Contingent liability disclosure | — |
| Voter approval required for new debt | No |
Fiscal Reporting Frequencymax 10 pts
| Interim reporting required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Interim reporting frequency | — |
| Year-end report deadline | — |
| Citizens budget required | No |
Enforcement & Oversightmax 10 pts
| Non-compliance penalties | — |
|---|---|
| Fiscal oversight body | ✓ Yes |
| Whistleblower protections | — |
| Legislative budget office | ✓ Yes |
Revenue & Tax Transparencymax 8 pts
| Tax expenditure reporting | — |
|---|---|
| Revenue forecasting required | ✓ Yes |
| Tax rate publication | — |
| Fee schedule publication | — |
Compensation & Payrollmax 8 pts
| Salary disclosure required | — |
|---|---|
| Salary disclosure scope | — |
| Pension benefit disclosure | — |
| Overtime reporting | — |
Capital & Asset Disclosuremax 8 pts
| Capital plan required | — |
|---|---|
| Asset inventory required | — |
| Surplus asset disposal transparency | — |