Regulatory actions and programs

the trustees of the Financial Accounting Foundation's board of trustees voted in late May to establish a new Private Company Council that will determine whether exceptions or modifications to U.S. GAAP for privately held companies are necessary -- and gathered crucial support from various professional bodies, most notably the American Institute of CPAs.

Robert Pozen suggests an alternative to audit firm rotation

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board held a daylong meeting to gauge reaction to its proposal for mandatory audit firm rotation.

The Supreme Court has upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

The Maryland Association of CPAs launched its new Center for Transparency, Performance, Management and Accountability using XBRL (TPMAx), with a special XBRL Thought Leader Symposium today.

Public companies saw a 5 percent increase in the fees they pay to external auditors last year, while private companies reported a 7 percent rise, according to a new survey from Financial Executives International.

The International Federation of Accountants has appointed Jörgen Holmquist, the former Director General of Internal Market and Services at the European Commission, as the first independent chair of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants.

A group of Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee have introduced a bill to extend 100 percent bonus depreciation through 2012 to encourage capital investments and job growth.

KPMG LLP has allied with Axiom Software Laboratories to address new regulatory requirements facing investment advisors, including Form PF.

AICPA’s president and CEO Barry Melancon and chair Greg Anton offer an update on professional issues at annual conference

Public Company Accounting Oversight Board chairman James Doty discusses how firms can recruit new auditors even as new standards get finalized, in an interview with AccountingToday.com editor-in-chief Michael Cohn in the PCAOB offices in Washington, D.C.

Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., said Wednesday that he plans to introduce a bill to provide tax breaks for small businesses that hire new employees or increase wages as a substitute for a bill being pushed by House Republicans to repeal the medical device tax in the health care law.

A decade since the enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the majority of executives and other professionals agree in a new survey that internal control over financial reporting structure in their organizations has significantly or moderately improved since compliance with the legislation became a requirement.

The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to remove the 2009 U.S. GAAP Taxonomy in July when it upgrades to the latest version of its EDGAR online system of financial filings.

Public Company Accounting Oversight Board chairman James Doty said Monday the board plans to issue a proposed standard on changes in the auditor’s reporting model in the third quarter, with other standards making progress this year as well.

Accounting firm Mayer Hoffman McCann has agreed to pay a $300,000 penalty to the California Board of Accountancy, plus investigation costs of up to $50,000, and be subject to two years’ probation, for its audits of the California city of Bell, where a number of officials have been accused of fraud and public corruption.

International Accounting Standards Board chairman Hans Hoogervorst said the IASB and the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board are making progress on an expected loss model for banking assets that will provide a more forward-looking model than the incurred loss model.

A House subcommittee held a hearing to consider what impact the return of a higher estate tax rate in 2013 would have on small businesses.

The Financial Accounting Foundation has issued a request for nominations for candidates to serve on its newly created Private Company Council.