Auditing

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released a series of questions and answers about audit waiver requirements under its October 2000 Small Pension Plan Security Amendments. The publication ( www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_auditwaiver.html ) explains how small pension plans can determine whether they qualify for an audit waiver under the amended regulations. Additional information is available by phone at 866-463-3278.

The Institute publishes the AICPA Audit Committee Toolkit to help audit committees recognize and satisfy their oversight responsibilities under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 ( www.aicpa.org/audcommctr/ ). This guide provides advice on meeting duties such as agenda setting, conducting executive sessions and evaluating the effectiveness of auditors and of the audit committee itself. Other topics covered include basic information on internal controls, antifraud accountability and off-balance-sheet transactions. The toolkit is one of several resources available at the AICPA’s Audit Committee Effectiveness Center ( www.aicpa.org/audcommctr/ ), which can help audit committees fulfill their corporate governance responsibilities.