The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued two proposed accounting standards updates with the goal of simplifying employee share-based payment accounting and the equity method of accounting for investments.

James Schnurr, chief accountant in charge of the Security and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Chief Accountant, said he disagrees with a former SEC chairman about abandoning convergence with International Financial Reporting Standards.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed charges against the government technology contractor Computer Sciences Corporation, its former CEO and several finance executives, accusing them of manipulating financial results and concealing significant problems about the company’s largest and most high-profile contract, as well as ignoring basic accounting standards to increase reported profits.

U.S. state and local governments will have to report billions of dollars in health-care liabilities on their balance sheets under an accounting change aimed at improving disclosure of retiree benefits.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has voted unanimously to approve two new standards that it believes will significantly improve the accounting and financial reporting by state and local governments for postemployment benefits other than pensions, primarily retiree health insurance.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has issued a paper examining potential changes to standards involving the use of specialists by auditing firms and is looking for public comments.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued a notice asking for comments on the effect of the new revenue recognition standards on taxpayers’ methods of tax accounting.