FASB News
Research for Performance Reporting Project Continues
As FASB develops an outline for its project on performance reporting, the board wants its staff to examine the reporting practices associated with the costs tied to the generation of revenue. “There are areas in the income statement where we’d like to understand what can be disaggregated, how can it be disaggregated, and in what format, without any … preconceived notions at this stage as to what that is,” said FASB member Marsha Hunt. “I have a little bit of a concern that if we focus on some specific terminology, we may be limiting a little bit the art of the possible, and I’m not sure at this stage in the project that’s what we want to do.” FASB’s research staff plans to meet directly with financial executives about their reporting practices and consult with investors and securities analysts about the type of detail they want from financial statements. FASB chairman Russell Golden said the staff should meet with a wide diversity of companies from the manufacturing and technology sectors, and he wants the mix to include large and small businesses, privately held and public companies, businesses with multinational operations and strictly domestic operations, and for-profit companies and not-for-profit organizations. He also wants to know how much financial executives are willing to divulge about the type of information they can gather and publicly reveal.
IASB News
Updated Conceptual Framework Includes Measurement, Performance
The IASB’s updated version of its Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting includes a new chapter on measurement and guidance on reporting financial performance. The updated framework also includes a revised definition for liability and a clarification of the concepts of stewardship, prudence, and uncertainty as they relate to financial reporting. The board described the updated framework as a comprehensive document that discusses the important topics it thinks about when writing standards. “The revised Conceptual Framework will greatly assist the board when developing IFRS,” IASB Chairman Hans Hoogervorst said in a statement. “It will also help other stakeholders to better understand the concepts that underpin the standards.” The update also emphasizes that the objective of financial reporting is to provide useful financial information to investors and other users of the information. It also clarifies the role of stewardship in meeting this objective.
AICPA News
Robert Dohrer Named Chief Auditor
On March 26, the AICPA named Robert Dohrer as its chief auditor. Dohrer will replace Charles Landes, who is planning to retire in early 2019. Dohrer will “serve as the AICPA’s expert on U.S. and international auditing, attestation, quality control, review, compilation, and preparation standards, as well as internal control and enterprise risk management,” said Susan Coffey, executive vice president for public practice, in a statement. Dohrer, who will officially take on the new role in October, now serves as chair of the AICPA’s Assurance Services Executive Committee.
