PCAOB Publishes Q&A on References to Authoritative Accounting Guidance

The PCAOB on Wednesday published staff questions and answers about references to authoritative accounting guidance in PCAOB standards.

The series of Q&As serves as a reminder that auditors should look to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification and SEC rules for authoritative U.S. GAAP guidance for SEC registrants, even though PCAOB standards may contain descriptions of and references to U.S. GAAP, according to a statement by the PCAOB.

The questions addressed are:

• Certain PCAOB standards include descriptions of and references to U.S. GAAP and accounting requirements. What is the status of those descriptions of and references to U.S. GAAP and accounting requirements upon the effective date of the Codification?
• What is the auditor’s responsibility if, in using the Codification, the auditor believes that an item in the financial statements should be accounted for differently under the Codification than under pre-Codification U.S. GAAP?
• What are the other responsibilities of an auditor with respect to the Codification?
• What consideration, if any, should an auditor give to descriptions of and references to U.S. GAAP in the standards of the PCAOB if he or she is auditing the financial statements of a foreign private issuer (“FPI”)8/ prepared in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”),9/ as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board?

The Q&As are available at

pcaobus.org/Standards/Staff_Questions_and_Answers/2009/09-02_FASB_Codification.pdf.

The statements contained in the Q&A are not rules of the PCAOB, and have not been approved by the board.