FASB requested comments on selected issues relating to
assets and liabilities with uncertainties (
www.fasb.org/draft/itc_assets_liabilities_with_uncertainties.pdf
). The invitation is part of a joint project through which FASB
and the International Accounting Standards Board are working to
converge and improve their respective guidance frameworks, which
FASB’s staff believes do not adequately address either probability or
uncertainty related to assets and liabilities. Comments are due
January 3, 2006.
FASB also issued Staff Position FAS 13-1, Accounting for Rental Costs Incurred during a Construction Period ( www.fasb.org/fasb_staff_positions/fsp_fas13-1.pdf ), effective for the first reporting period beginning after December 15, 2005. Entities are permitted to apply the FSP early to financial statements not yet issued and retrospectively in accordance with FASB Statement no. 154, Accounting Changes and Error Corrections ( www.fasb.org/pdf/fas154.pdf ).
The AICPA Accounting Standards Executive Committee
(AcSEC) issued Statement of Position (SOP) 05-1, Accounting by
Insurance Enterprises for Deferred Acquisition Costs in Connection
with Modifications or Exchanges of Insurance Contracts,
effective for replacements occurring in fiscal years beginning
after December 15, 2006. Initial application should be as of the
beginning of an entity’s fiscal year. Retrospective application is
prohibited, but early adoption is encouraged. Entities that adopt the
SOP prior to the effective date should restate all interim reports for
the year of adoption.
As part of its effort to increase the participation of
financial information users in the standard-setting process, FASB is
consulting the professional investment community on accounting issues.
Its newly established Investor Task Force includes analysts from the
nation’s largest institutional investment firms, who will advise FASB
on standard-setting initiatives related to their areas of expertise.
