AICPA proposes modifying peer review reports

The AICPA Peer Review Board issued a proposal that would modify the current peer review report so that it would clearly indicate if a single audit was selected.

In an exposure draft, the AICPA also proposed that the firm representation letter be modified to reflect all must-select engagements, including single audits.

The Peer Review Board has identified certain types of engagements as so significant to the public interest that at least one of each type must be selected for review as part of a firm’s peer review if the firm performs these engagements. These types of engagements are referred to as “must-select.”

A single audit is one type of must-select engagement and is a rigorous, organizationwide audit or examination of an entity that expends $750,000 or more of federal assistance received for its operations in a fiscal year.

A firm’s representation letter is a letter signed by firm leadership attesting to the accuracy and completeness of the information provided to the peer reviewer. Interpretation 63-1 of the AICPA Peer Review Standards describes the types of engagements that are required to be selected for review in a peer review.

The ED recommends several measures to align with Interpretation 63-1 and provides additional accountability for the performance, selection, and identification of all must-select engagements during peer review.

Comments were scheduled to be accepted through Sept. 30 at PR_expdraft@aicpa.org. Pending approval of the revision to the illustrative peer review reports and the illustrative firm representation letter, the proposed revisions would take effect for reviews beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2017.