what is other comprehensive basis of accounting 
other comprehensive basis of accounting ocboa includes financial statements prepared using a system of accounting that differs from gaap the most common being tax basis and cash basis financial statements other comprehensive basis of accounting ocboa systems also includes a statutory basis of accounting such as that used by insurance companies to comply with the rules of a state insurance commission as well as financial statements prepared using defined criteria that are well supported in popular literature understanding ocboatwo major advantages of financial statements prepared under ocboa are they are easier to understand than statements prepared under gaap which can be quite complex and they may cost significantly less to prepare than gaap based statements a key difference between gaap basis financial statements and those prepared under ocboa is that the latter does not require a statement of cash flows one criticism of ocboa statements is that disclosures are not adequate as a result it is recommended that comprehensive disclosures be made by a company that has adopted ocboa including the basis of accounting used contingent liabilities and risks and uncertainties under the statement on auditing standards united states no 62 special reports an ocboa is any one of special considerationsin situations where gaap basis statements aren t necessary because of loan covenants regulatory requirements or similar circumstances an ocboa alternative may be the preferred format ocboa statements may be more useful for certain entities based on who the users are and what they are expecting to see they may be required by a regulatory agency or may be tied to budgets and management decisions in addition costs may be reduced since these audits may require less complex procedures and required disclosures although ocboa statements deviate from the far more common gaap standards they are not without a code of their own for instance 