PCAOB overhauls agendas

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board updated its standard-setting and research agendas Wednesday as it takes on new projects.

The new agendas, released by the PCAOB’s Office of the Chief Auditor, includes six short-term projects where the OCA expects board action during the coming 12 months. Along with existing projects on other auditors and quality control, the OCA expects to take up noncompliance with laws and regulations (or NOCLAR), an attestation standards update, going concern, and confirmations.

The OCA also added four mid-term projects to its standard-setting agenda: substantive analytical procedures, fraud, interim ethics and independence standards, and interim standards. While formal action is not expected on these projects in the coming 12 months, staff are actively engaged in furthering these projects. The OCA’s research agenda continues to have two projects: data and technology, and audit evidence.

Over the past year, the PCAOB has undergone extensive changes with an almost completely new set of board members and a new chair, Erica Williams, after complaints that the PCAOB wasn’t developing new standards quickly enough, was too lax on enforcement, and had stopped meeting with outside advisory groups. The board recently revived its Investor Advisory Group and a new Standards and Emerging Issues Advisory Group (see story). 

Courtesy of the PCAOB

“Today, the PCAOB has taken another critical step in advancing our statutory standard-setting mandate by updating the standard-setting and research agendas,” Williams said in a statement Wednesday. “The agendas represent the board’s focus to modernize, simplify and enhance our professional standards.”

The PCAOB said it’s actively researching certain topics that will inform the standard-setting agenda so it can respond quickly to changes in the audit environment, including changes from advances in the use of data and technology in preparing and auditing financial statements.

Going forward, the agendas will be more dynamic, and will change in response to developments from PCAOB oversight activities, as well as engagement with investors and other stakeholders, including through the board's advisory groups; discussions with the Securities and Exchange Commission staff; observations of the work of other standard-setters; and other sources. 

The PCAOB said it will be looking for input on its agendas from its advisory groups at their inaugural meetings later this year. The OCA will update the agendas as needed, but at a minimum, semi-annually, to provide the latest details on the status and timing of the various standard-setting and research projects.