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TOPICS / AUDIT & ASSURANCE

PCAOB to consider related-parties re-proposal

The PCAOB will meet Tuesday to consider re-proposing an auditing standard on related parties. PCAOB member Jay Hanson said Thursday that the board is making the second proposal in response to comments it received on the first proposal, which was made Feb. 28, 2012. More comments will be sought on

New TPAs provide guidance for auditors

The AICPA has issued nonauthoritative guidance in five Technical Question and Answer (TPA) releases, which are available on the AICPA website. TPA 9110.22 provides guidance for auditors when an entity’s financial statements are audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards and Government Auditing Standards. When both standards are used,

Auditing

  Proposed reforms designed to streamline and improve the way the federal government administers more than $600 billion in grants annually have been published by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The OMB is proposing broad reforms to compliance audits performed under OMB Circular A-133, Audits of States, Local

PCAOB attempting to make auditing standards easier to navigate

The PCAOB on Tuesday took the first step toward what’s intended to be a comprehensive reorganization of its auditing standards. Board members unanimously voted to publish a proposal for a framework that would place the PCAOB’s auditing standards into a topical structure with a single, integrated numbering system. The board

PCAOB may propose reorganization of auditing standards

The PCAOB is considering proposing a reorganization of its auditing standards that would be designed to present them in a logical order that generally follows the flow of how an audit is conducted. An open meeting of the board has been scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday to consider issuing for

ASB corrects clarified auditing standard AU-C 920

The AICPA Auditing Standards Board (ASB) has made a correction to an auditing section in the AICPA Professional Standards to reinforce the board’s intentions not to change practice and to avoid unintended consequences. The auditing (AU) sections were redrafted as part of the clarity project to reflect the ASB’s established

Clarifying the standard for group audits

As a result of the AICPA Auditing Standards Board’s (ASB) Clarity Project, a new standard has been developed that provides clearer requirements and guidance for audits of group financial statements, in particular those in which part of the work is performed by auditors other than the auditor who expresses the

U.K. regulator considering mandatory audit firm rotation

A much awaited summary of provisional findings of the U.K. Competition Commission (CC) stated that companies are reluctant to change auditors because they have difficulty comparing alternatives with their existing auditor, prefer continuity, and face significant costs in switching auditors. In addition, the provisional findings, released Friday, stated that instead

SEC approves PCAOB standard on communication with audit committees

The SEC has approved PCAOB Auditing Standard No. 16, Communications with Audit Committees, and related amendments to PCAOB standards that were designed to help external auditors communicate effectively with audit committees during public company audits. All U.S. public companies, including emerging growth companies as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business

Twenty-three tips provide implementation guidance about audits of group financial statements

Auditors looking for guidance on the new clarified auditing standard about audits of group financial statements can turn to a new resource. The new standard, AU-C Section 600, Special Considerations—Audits of Group Financial Statements (Including the Work of Component Auditors) (AICPA, Professional Standards), took effect for audits of group financial

PCAOB will issue report on problems with audits of ICFR

Persistent problems related to audits of internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) have led the PCAOB to issue a report describing the four problems. The PCAOB will issue a Rule 4010 report to describe the results of recent inspections with regard to audits of ICFR, PCAOB Director of Registration and

Auditing

  Change apparently is coming to the auditor’s report, but views vary over the appropriate content and structure for reports, and particularly over the issue of “auditor commentary.” The question of appropriate content and structure for the auditor’s report was the subject of an International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board

IAASB proposes that auditors expand review of “other information”

A new International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) proposal would require auditors to read and consider information in certain documents that accompany audited financial statements. If this additional information leads the auditor to identify a material inconsistency, or a misstatement in the audited financial statements, the auditor would be

Auditing

  The AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board (ASB) issued Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) No. 126, The Auditor’s Consideration of an Entity’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern (Redrafted), as a result of its Clarity Project to supersede SAS No. 59, The Auditor’s Consideration of an Entity’s Ability to Continue

ASB recommends scoping nonissuers out of “auditor commentary” requirements

An AICPA committee is weighing in on a recent International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) proposal that would require expanded commentary in auditors’ reports. Nonissuers, such as private companies and nonprofits, should be scoped out of requirements for “auditor commentary” when the IAASB’s proposed standard is developed, according to a

Survey takes pulse of board members, shows opposition to audit firm rotation

Corporate board members charged with oversight of U.S. public companies are opposed to mandatory rotation of external auditors by more than 2 to 1, a new survey shows. Mandatory audit firm rotation is a continuing subject of debate in Europe and the United States, where regulators are exploring such a

Scope of appropriate content, structure in auditor’s report under debate

Change apparently is coming to the auditor’s report, but views vary over the appropriate content and structure for reports, and particularly over the issue of “auditor commentary.” The question of appropriate content and structure for the auditor’s report was the subject of an International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB)

Proposed amendments clear way for audits of SME Framework financial statements

Proposed amendments to auditing standards issued today by the AICPA Auditing Standards Board (ASB) include changes that would clear the way for audits of financial statements prepared in accordance with the special-purpose financial reporting framework for small and medium-size entities (FRF-SME) the AICPA is developing. The proposal, Omnibus Statement on

ASB seeking feedback specific to U.S. auditor’s reports

The AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board (ASB) is asking members to complete a survey to help inform the board’s response to the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) Invitation to Comment: Improving the Auditor’s Report (ITC). On June 22, the IAASB released its ITC, seeking input on potential changes to

The week ahead: PCAOB considers audit committee communications standard

An auditing standard on communications between auditors and audit committees that has been under development for more than two years will be among the most-watched items in the accounting profession this week. The PCAOB will consider the reproposed standard for adoption during an open meeting of the PCAOB at 9:30

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Tax season quick guide

Get ready for tax season with the JofA’s annual filing season quick guide, an easy-to-use compilation of dollar thresholds, tax tables, standard amounts, credits, and deductions. Download and print for quick reference this tax season.