scope:

PURPOSE

This chapter prescribes the requirements of the Standard Financial Information Structure (SFIS) as a common business language that enables budgeting, performance-based management, and the generation of financial statements. The SFIS is a comprehensive data structure that supports requirements for budgeting, financial accounting, cost/performance, and external reporting needs across the Department of Defense (DoD) enterprise.

The SFIS standardizes financial reporting across the DoD and allows revenues and expenses to be reported by programs that align with major goals, rather than basing reporting primarily on appropriation categories. It also enables decision-makers to efficiently compare programs and their associated activities and costs across DoD and provides a basis for common valuation of DoD programs, assets, and liabilities.

The initial development phase (Phase I) identified and defined data elements needed to support the generation of financial statements and external reporting. SFIS Phases II and III address enterprise-wide code accounting requirements to provide the DoD with a better valuation of the total cost of business.