Accounting standards

Russell Golden, the newly appointed chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, will be overseeing a board that will be dealing with a new uncertain environment in which it will be only one of a number of standard-setters from around the world working together in a more multilateral way to decide on future standards for the profession to follow.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board said Friday they plan to create a joint group to help companies and their accountants make the transition to the upcoming final converged standard on revenue recognition.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board has released proposals aimed at fundamental transformation of the structure of the future auditor’s report with the goal of communicating better to users such as investors and financial analysts.

The American Institute of CPAs has issued an exposure draft resulting from AICPA’s Attestation Clarity Project in an effort to clarify the professional standards it uses for attestation engagements.

Gaylen Hansen, chairman of the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy, discusses the recent controversy over accounting standards for private companies, NASBA's disagreement with the American Institute of CPAs, and their ongoing relationship, in an interview with Accounting Today editor-in-chief Daniel Hood.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has named James L. Kroeker, former chief accountant for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as a member and vice chairman.

The International Accounting Standards Board has published for public comment a discussion paper exploring possible changes to the IASB’s Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting.

The proposed changes in lease accounting standards described in the recent exposure draft from the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board will significantly alter financial reporting standards for both lessors and lessees, according to Fitch Ratings.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Private Company Council voted Tuesday to finalize the Private Company Decision-Making Framework, which outlines criteria they intend to use for determining whether and under what circumstances it is appropriate to adjust financial reporting requirements for private companies following U.S. GAAP.

The cost of the transition to International Financial Reporting Standards was significant for many companies, but generally around the same amount they had budgeted or less than they expected, according to a new study.

The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy and the American Institute of CPAs have pledged their cooperation on financial reporting frameworks for private after a dispute broke out between the two organizations over the AICPA’s recent issuance of its Financial Reporting Framework for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is issuing a new accounting standards update on Monday that defers indefinitely certain disclosures about investments held by nonpublic employee benefit plans in their plan sponsors’ own nonpublic equity securities.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has issued for public comment a proposed statement regarding the transition provisions of GASB’s new pension standards for state and local governments with the goal of eliminating a potential source of understatement of restated beginning net position and expense in a government’s first year of implementing GASB’s new pension accounting standards.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board plan to host a series of joint public roundtable meetings on different continents to discuss their revised joint proposals on leasing standards that were published in May.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued for public comment three proposals to address the concerns of private companies about accounting for intangible assets acquired in business combinations, goodwill, and certain types of interest rate swaps under U.S. GAAP.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is expected to issue a document Thursday proposing to improve the financial reporting of insurance contracts, including the measurement of insurance liabilities and the related effect on the statement of comprehensive income.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued a proposal to improve disclosures of uncertainties related to an organization’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has issued for public comment a proposed concepts statement that would guide GASB when establishing standards regarding the measurement of assets and liabilities for U.S. state and local governments.

The International Accounting Standards Board has issued a revised exposure draft containing proposals for changing the accounting for insurance contracts.

The New York State Society of CPAs has expressed concern that an International Audit and Assurance Standards Board proposal that aims to make auditor reporting more transparent and improve users’ understanding of audited financial statements goes too far in expanding the scope of auditor responsibilities.