Regulatory actions and programs

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.

The Internal Revenue Service has added a revised Virtual Small Business Tax Workshop to its Web site with updated content, interactive features and a new reference section.

A group of top central bank governors is calling for accounting standard-setters to develop a provisioning approach for troubled loans based on an expected-losses model rather than fair value.

IMGCAP(1)]As I have performed over 700 SAS 70 audits, I should find that each SAS 70 audit is similar to the previous one I just performed. The good or bad news, depending upon how you look at it, is that they are not, and 2010 looks to be an even more challenging year to stay on top of the changes.

The American Institute of CPAs has issued a new standard on compilation and review engagements that represents one of the biggest changes to its Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services since 1978.

Financial analysts who cover the insurance sector are generally dissatisfied with the current financial reporting framework for the insurance industry.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued SFAS No. 157, Fair Value Measurements, in September 2006, and SFAS No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities, in February 2007. These pronouncements may appear old news, but they remain fraught with risk for the unwary and are still being misunderstood and clarified.

Like others, we've watched a slowly developing controversy over the question of whether accounting standards should be "principles-based" or "rules-based." When Sarbanes-Oxley was passed, it required the Securities and Exchange Commission to produce a report on the difference, which the commission completed in July 2003.

Washington, D.C. - In a case that carries the potential to reshape the regulatory landscape of the accounting profession, the U.S. Supreme Court last month heard oral arguments in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board - with several justices appearing to take the plaintiffs' side in the case.

A bill signed into law by New York State Governor David Paterson provides an exemption from the state's new tax preparer registration requirements for CPAs, including those who hail from outside the state.

The drumbeats in the jungle are getting louder: Like Paul Revere's midnight ride, the drums are booming out lyrics to an unfamiliar tune that sounds like: "IFRS is coming! IFRS is coming!"

Call it what you like, but the first decade of the millennium has passed with many a whimper.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has issued final standards on postemployment benefits and municipal bankruptcy.

Registration, testing and continuing education are at the core of the requirements proposed by the Internal Revenue Service in response to calls for greater oversight of paid tax preparers.