Alma Mater Honors Founding Father
Robert Sprouse, a founding member of the Financial
Accounting Standards Board, received the Outstanding Achievement
Award from the University of Minnesota, where he earned his
masters and doctoral degrees. Sprouse also was Beta Alpha Psi
Accountant of the Year in 1987 and was inducted into the
Accounting Hall of Fame in 1994. Theres a New Sheriff
in Town The American Institute of CPAs
auditing standards board has appointed its first chairwoman,
Deborah Lambert, a founding partner of Johnson Lambert &
Co., Bethesda, Maryland.
Government Finance Info The Government
Finance Officers Association (GFOA) has made available two new
legislative updates: Legislative and Regulatory Overview
summarizes issues the GFOA is monitoring in Congress and
includes a summary of key provisions in the Taxpayer Relief
Act of 1997, and GFOA Fact Sheets offer more detailed
discussions of issues important to the GFOA. Copies of the
overview and fact sheets may be obtained by faxing a request
to the Federal Liaison Center at 202-429-2755 or by e-mail at
federalliaison@gfoa.org
If We Can Make It Here The National
Association of State Boards of Accountancy has moved its New
York office to 645 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10022. The
staff will continue to support the activities of NASBAs
national headquarters in Nashville. The new space is a few
blocks from the American Institute of CPAs New York
headquarters.
Worldwide Management Accounting The
International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) released
Articles of Merit1997 Competition, a collection of articles
that have made, or are likely to make, a valuable contribution
to the advancement of management accounting. To obtain copies,
call the IFAC at 212-302-5952.
In Search of... A survey developed by
Accountemps, a financial staffing service, revealed that
executives waste a total of five weeks a year trying to find
missing or lost items. Accountemps advises executives to
purchase personal information management software, because the
much-heralded "paperless office" is not yet a
reality. | Saving the
Nest Egg According to the Employee Benefit
Research Institute, employees who have changed jobs, retired
or become disabled are increasingly likely to preserve
lump-sum distributions from retirement plans. In 1996, 79% of
the dollars distributed were preserved by rolling them over
into individual retirement accounts or similar vehicles. The
likelihood of a rollover increases with the age of the
recipient and size of the distribution.
Long Before GAAP Accountants are
generally a law-abiding group, but CPA W. R. Anderson
discovered his ancestors were anything but. His book, Norse
America, the Tenth Century Onward, is a study of his Viking
ancestors with a focus on the Norse presence in North America.
The book is $20, including delivery, and may be ordered from
W. R. Anderson, Box 60204-91, Evanston, Illinois 60204.
Personal Financial Specialists Love a Parade
"How a Financial Planner Can Help You," an article
in the October 12 issue of Parade Magazine, discusses personal
financial specialists in a sidebar on choosing a financial
planner. The PFS is described as "a certified public
accountant with training in financial planning. To qualify,
the adviser must pass an exam and have at least three years of
professional experience in personal finance." The item
includes the AICPA phone number for referrals.
Credit for Debt Figures President Clinton
announced the federal budget deficit for fiscal 1997 was
likely to be $22.6 billiona drop of $267 billion since he
entered the White House. Clinton credited the decline of the
deficit to his administrations economic program, including a
1993 tax increase and increases in exports. According to the
administration, the deficit is at its lowest level since 1974,
and it is at its lowest proportion to the gross domestic
product (0.3%) since 1970.
"Old Man" FASB In an article on
the derivatives proposal and the threat to the integrity of
the Financial Accounting Standards Board, New York Times
columnist Floyd Norris pointed out that the FASB, at 24,
already has lasted longer than its predecessors: The Committee
on Accounting Procedures continued on for 21 years, from 1938
to 1959, and the Accounting Principles Board existed for 14
years, from 1959 to 1973. The FASB was founded in 1973.
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