Audit & Accounting

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants has released for public exposure proposed changes to the definition of “engagement team” in the IESBA Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants.

Proposed changes in leasing accounting standards are creating concerns among many businesses that use long-term leases, with 92 percent of executives in a new survey indicating they are unprepared to address the changes.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board are not seeing eye to eye on an important component of their leasing standards project involving income statement changes for lessees.

Daniel Goelzer has been a member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board since the board was first established under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and he is completing his second and final term this Friday.

Firm News -- March 2

E&Y TO PAY PCAOB $2M TO SETTLE AUDIT CHARGES

It is well past the time to think of accountants as bean counters. Unfortunately, the recent piece by Professors Miller & Bahnson ("Some evidence that the AICPA's management has lost its focus," December 2011, page 20) places the profession back into the audit closet.

For The Spirit of Accounting's 10th anniversary in 2006, we reminisced about events over that decade, including this synopsis of a misjudgment that may be the worst ever:

WHERE'S MY REFUND?

The American Institute of CPAs told the Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board at a hearing Tuesday that the IRS needs to improve its correspondence audit program to lessen the burden on taxpayers.