Using the ABC costing system - Activity-based costing to calculate costs in the public sector

Abstract

The calculation of costs in the public sector translates into a way of assessing management efficiency. However, there are great difficulties encountered in implementing this system. With the regulation of the Price Registration System - SRP, there is now the possibility for an agency to buy or contract for its own use and allow other agencies to participate (or ask for a ride) in the same bidding instrument, as long as it is of interest. homogeneous. This article presents a study that measured the cost of purchasing inputs at a university hospital in the city of Manaus by adhering to price registration procedures using the ABC cost. A case study was carried out and the data were collected through documentary research, mapping the acquisition process and unstructured interviews. Subsequently, the ABC costing method was used to measure the cost of the service performed (object of the study) for the acquisition of these inputs. The results of the study indicate that the ABC costing method is the most adequate to measure the costs of services performed in the public sector, since it avoids the arbitrary nature of the apportionment, allocating the values ​​referring to the human and material resources applied in the acquisition process.