THE ACCOUNT OF PROFIT AND LOSS ACCORDING TO UNIFORM SYSTEM ACCOUNTS FOR THE LODGING INDUSTRY

Abstract

This paper examines the role that the Uniform System of Accounts (USALI) plays in hotel-accounting practices and examines how widely accepted and adopted USALI is in today\'s lodging industry. It also provides a brief history of USALI by emphasizing the key factors that initiated and shaped its development. The USALI is the standard for financial reporting for lodging-industry operators and is widely (although not exclusively) used. Surprisingly, some 12 percent of hospitality accountants may not know anything about the USALI. The chart of accounts has been revised periodically since its inception in the 1920s and has always reflected the collective wisdom of hospitality-industry financial experts.