Audit & Accounting

As last month's one-two punch of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee devastated the East Coast with massive flooding, widespread power outages and as-yet-uncalculated billions in damages, many of that region's accounting firms were forced to implement disaster recovery programs before business slowly returned to normal.

The Financial Accounting Foundation is poised to release the proposals of its trustee working group for changing the structure and process of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's oversight of standards for private companies and nonprofits.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has finalized a new standard aimed at simplifying how organizations test goodwill for impairment.

The concept of quality governance practices within nonprofit organizations is not revolutionary. Historically, however, the role of those charged with the governance of nonprofit organizations - the board of directors - has not always been clearly defined.

PRIVATE MATTERS

The Internal Revenue Service needs to take additional steps in order to expand its audits to include returns from prior or subsequent years when taxpayers being audited may owe substantial taxes.

Accounting Today has released its annual list of the Best Accounting Firms to Work For, which identifies and honors the best places of employment in the accounting industry.

In a union that would create one of the largest CPA and business advisory firms in California, Top 100 Firm Burr Pilger Mayer is merging with Windes & McClaughry Accountancy Corp., effective Jan. 1, 2012.

H&R Block announced Thursday it will discontinue service under its ExpressTax brand, which primarily served early filers who wanted quick refunds and currently has 269 franchise offices.

While Southeast accounting firm Elliott Davis scored first in four categories of university and employer ranking Web site Vault.com’s Accounting Quality of Life Rankings for 2012, accounting firms shared the wealth in the other 11 categories.