Rep. John Hall, D-N.Y., has proposed a new bill that would allow the Small Business Administration to offer its own loans to small businesses and increase tax deductions for small businesses.

XBRL International has released a discussion document to solicit input on how to develop Extensible Business Reporting Language with new capabilities in the future.

The trustees of the International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation, which oversees the International Accounting Standards Board, have announced a series of changes to their constitution, including an emphasis on adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards over convergence.

AICPA OFFERS FAIR VALUE INVESTMENT GUIDANCE

With nearly 120 countries having already adopted or agreed to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards, U.S. firms and practitioners have accepted the when-not-if scenario regarding IFRS convergence - but most report making preparations to the principles-based guidelines at a measured pace.

While reading a recent article, Paul B. was struck by an uncanny similarity between the push to change the profession's educational requirements that started more than 20 years ago and current efforts by the large auditing firms and the American Institute of CPAs to promote International Financial Reporting Standards "convergence." (In this context, "convergence" means, "Dump the Financial Accounting Standards Board and put the International Accounting Standards Board in charge.")

The American Institute of CPAs has published a book on how the top 100 international public companies use International Financial Reporting Standards as U.S. accounting standards converge slowly toward IFRS.

At least a dozen major nations – including several of the USA’s top international trading partners – are continuing to slam the door on efforts by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to conduct cross-border inspections of non-U.S. audit firms as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

President Barack Obama has called for expanding the size of loans made through the Small Business Administration’s SBA Express program from $350,000 to $1 million.

The Financial Accounting Foundation has a new responsibility: ongoing maintenance of the U.S. GAAP Financial Reporting Taxonomy in the new data-tagging format mandated by the SEC.

The National Notary Association has published a much-anticipated revision of its Model Notary Act with fraud deterrence, identity theft, and electronic document protection rules, to improve the standards of care for notaries.

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board has published a new standard that covers the accounting for and disclosure of intangible assets: IPSAS 31, “Intangible Assets.”

Ernst & Young has released a new report focusing on carbon emissions management, encouraging companies to address climate change issues in their business strategies.

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted to issue interpretive guidance on how public companies should disclose any business and legal developments related to climate change.

In his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama proposed using money repaid by financial institutions to the Troubled Asset Relief Program to help small businesses.

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board has published three new standards that cover all aspects of the accounting for and disclosure of financial instruments in the public sector.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board tentatively decided to define fair value as an exit price during a three-day joint meeting this week.

The International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation has published a set of training material on International Financial Reporting Standards for Small and Midsized Entities, the streamlined set of accounting standards for private companies issued last year.

IMGCAP(1)]IAS 39, “Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement,” is arguably the most complex of International Financial Reporting Standards.

Many companies are getting a jump on preparing for adoption of interactive data-tagging technology on their financial statements, even before they are subject to SEC requirements.