Of Interest . . .

June 2008

AICPA Updates

• AICPA 2008 Spring Council Highlights:  The AICPA Spring Council meeting was held in Amelia Island, Florida in May, advancing many new initiatives and discussing others. (AICPA)



• AICPA Announces The Introduction of IFRS.com:  The AICPA has announced the introduction of www.ifrs.com, a new Web site developed in partnership with its marketing and technology subsidiary CPA2Biz to help members and financial professionals learn about and stay informed on International Financial Reporting Standards. (AICPA)



• Certified in Financial Forensics Credential:   The governing Council of the AICPA has authorized the creation of a new CPA specialty credential in forensic accounting. The Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) credential, will launch in early fall. (SmartPros)



• AICPA Advances the "Reliability Project":   The AICPA Council took steps last month to advance the Reliability Project, which revises compilation and review standards to better serve the public interest by allowing CPAs to be more involved in performance and reporting requirements with a more narrow definition of "independence." (AICPA)



• AICPA Names IASB to Negotiate International Financial Reporting Principles:   The governing Council of the AICPA voted to designate the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in London as an accounting body for purposes of establishing international financial accounting and reporting principles. (AICPA)



• AICPA Adds Content for New CPA Exam:  The AICPA has released a new exposure draft, which proposes changes in the content specification outlines and introduces expanded (separate) skill specification outlines for the Uniform CPA Examination based on results of the 2008 Practice Analysis.  (AICPA)

Other News Of Interest

• Why The Growth In US CPA Firm Associations? :   The recent CCH 2008 Annual Directory of CPA Firm Associations made interesting reading on a number of fronts. (MSI Global Alliance)



• New IRS Form for Misclassified Workers:   The IRS has developed a new form for an employee who has been misclassified as Independent Contractors by an employer. Uncollected Social Security and Medicare Tax on Wages, Form 8919, will now be used to figure and report the employee's share of uncollected social security and Medicare taxes due on his/her compensation. (IRS)



• Firms Hiring Accountants with IFRS Expertise:   Firms in the U.S. are bracing for the convergence of global accounting standards. U.S. and foreign accounting regulators are about to unveil a new plan to expedite the convergence of international and U.S. accounting rules, according to Reuters. (BusinessInsurance.com)



• Launch of First Web-based Identity Theft Compliance Software:   A new federal regulation, which begins November 1, 2008, will impose new responsibilities on businesses to prevent consumer identity theft. The impact is broad and the rule affects every single bank, credit union, mortgage lender, auto dealer, credit card lender, payday lender, landlord, utility company, phone company, and any consumer or small business lender in the country. CompliancePal offers software and 23 red flags that every business should look out for.  (CompliancePal)



• Consulting Firms with Established Brands Receive Higher Hourly Rates:   A newly released research study from RainToday.com and the Wellesley Hills Group titled Fees and Pricing Benchmark Report: Consulting Industry 2008, finds that while brand leaders (27% of responding consulting firms) and “not very well-known” firms (73% of responding consulting firms) have similar standard / book rates, the hourly rates brand leaders actually get were always higher than their counterparts. (RainToday.com)



• Lawsuits May Expand Sarbanes-Oxley:   Two lawsuits filed by former employees against Fidelity Investments may resolve a simmering dispute in the securities industry: Whether mutual fund employees are protected by a whistle-blower law adopted in the wake of corporate accounting scandals. (Boston Globe)



• The Beginning of the End of GAAP:  FASB chairman Robert Herz announces that a public forum, slated for June, will kick off an effort to move American companies to international accounting standards.(CFO.com)



• E&Y Mortgage Audits Faulted by PCAOB:   Problematic reviews of unnamed lender draw criticism in the auditor watchdog's latest round of inspections. (CFO.com)



• Greater Caution for 401(K) Plan Engagements:   Practical Accountant's Howard Wolosky warns that with investments declining in 401(k) plans and with the LaRue decision to rely upon, there will be a significant increase in the number of claims made and lawsuits filed with regard to 401(k) plans. (Web CPA)

Downloads

June 2008 INSIDE Public Accounting - Page 2
Insights Into Increasing The Number of African-American CPAs:    A 2007 NABA/Howard University Summit explored the perception that increasing numbers of African Americans are neither sitting for nor passing the CPA examination, and therefore not becoming CPAs. This report offers insights and ideas on how to change that situation. (National Association of Black Accountants)

June 2008 INSIDE Public Accounting - Page 8
2007 Electronic Monitoring & Surveillance Survey :    From e-mail monitoring and Website blocking to phone tapping and GPS tracking, employers increasingly combine technology with policy to manage productivity and minimize litigation, security, and other risks. All employers should read the results of this 2007 survey and be sure they are up-to-date on the latest trends and risks. (American Management Association and The ePolicy Institute)

Women of Color in Accounting:    This May 2008 report indicates that women of color have more in common with men of color than with white women in their attitudes regarding exclusivity of the work environment and their perceptions that practices intended to support inclusion are not as effective as they could be. (Catalyst)

2008 Trends in the Supply of Accounting Graduates and the Demand for Public Accounting Recruits:   The 2008 edition of Trends in the Supply of Accounting Graduates and the Demand for Public Accounting Recruits is a continuation of a long-standing AICPA survey. The last survey was published in 2005 (for the 2003-04 academic year), and the current version attempts to identify key trends in accounting enrollment, graduation and hiring through the 2006-07 academic year. (AICPA)