Tax & Accounting

1/07/09 -- FASB Amended Pension Disclosure Requirements in Final FSP No. FAS 132(R)-1

2009-01-07T00:00:00Z

1/07/09 -- FASB Amended Pension Disclosure Requirements in Final FSP No. FAS 132(R)-1 The FASB's Final FASB Staff Position (FSP) No. FAS 132(R)-1, Employers? Disclosures about Postretirement Benefit Plan Assets, will make employers provide more transparency about the assets held by retirement plan and the concentrations of risk in those plans. The guidance, which was released on December 30, 2008, establishes a range of additional disclosures designed to give more specific information about pension...(read more)

1/06/09 -- SEC Issues Final Rule on Energy Reserves in Release No. 33-8995

2009-01-06T00:00:00Z

1/06/09 -- SEC Issues Final Rule on Energy Reserves in Release No. 33-8995 The SEC issued a final rule updating the disclosure requirements for oil and gas producers in Release No. 33-8995, Modernization of Oil and Gas Reporting, on December 31, 2008. The rule becomes effective January 1, 2010. Release No. 33-8995 amends the disclosure requirements in Regulation S-K, and Regulation S-X, and it adds Subpart 1200 to Regulation S-K to codify the revised disclosure requirements in Industry Guide 2, which...(read more)

01/05/09 -- Pension Disclosure Requirements Are Amended In Final FSP No. FAS 132(R)-1

2009-01-05T00:00:00Z

01/05/09 -- Pension Disclosure Requirements Are Amended In Final FSP No. FAS 132(R)-1 The FASB's Final FASB Staff Position (FSP) No. FAS 132(R)-1, Employers? Disclosures about Postretirement Benefit Plan Assets, will require employers to provide more transparency about the assets held by retirement plan and the concentrations of risk in those plans. The guidance, which was released on December 30, 2008, establishes a range of additional disclosures designed to give more specific information about...(read more)

12/31/08 - Final Guidance Issued in 2008 Focused on Fair Value, Off-Balance-Sheet Activity

2008-12-31T00:00:00Z

12/31/08 - Final Guidance Issued in 2008 Focused on Fair Value, Off-Balance-Sheet Activity For the FASB, the bleak news from the financial sector and the response to the credit crisis dictated much of the standard-setting activity during 2008. A large part of the guidance issued in the past 12 months addressed topics such as fair value, hedge accounting, and off-balance-sheet activity. Three FASB Staff Positions (FSP) related to fair value measurements: FSP No. FAS No. 157-1, Application of FASB...(read more)

12/30/08 - FASB Continues Planned Reform of Financial Instrument Guidance

2008-12-30T00:00:00Z

12/30/08 - FASB Continues Planned Reform of Financial Instrument Guidance The FASB issued Proposed FASB Staff Position (FSP) No. 107-a, Disclosures about Certain Financial Assets: An Amendment of FASB Statement No. 107, on December 24, 2008. With the issuance of the draft guidance, the FASB is taking another step in its response to the global financial crisis. (See Proposed Guidance in FSP No. EITF 99-20-a Would Standardize Calculation for Impairments in the December 23, 2008, edition of Accounting...(read more)

12/29/08 - Pension Bill May Ease Funding Requirements for Cash-Strapped Plan Sponsors

2008-12-29T00:00:00Z

12/29/08 - Pension Bill May Ease Funding Requirements for Cash-Strapped Plan Sponsors President Bush's signing of the Worker, Retiree and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 on December 23, 2008, hardly solves all the problems plan sponsors have with underfunded pensions, but it at least eases some of the obligations they have to make up the shortfalls in defined benefit plans that have suffered sharp losses in the financial meltdown. The bill was approved by Congress earlier this month, and the wide...(read more)

12/23/08- FASB Opts for Stricter Guidance on Off-Balance-Sheet Activities

2008-12-23T00:00:00Z

12/23/08- FASB Opts for Stricter Guidance on Off-Balance-Sheet Activities The FASB decided to keep with its ambitious schedule for amending off-balance-sheet accounting, resisting pressure from constituents seeking to delay the stricter rules, when it met for its weekly meeting on December 17, 2008, at its Norwalk, CT headquarters. The Board plans to move forward with its short-term project that will amend SFAS No. 140, Accounting for Transfers and Servicing of Financial Assets and Extinguishments...(read more)

12/22/08 -- FINRA Chief Mary Schapiro Named by Obama to Head SEC

2008-12-22T00:00:00Z

12/22/08 -- FINRA Chief Mary Schapiro Named by Obama to Head SEC President-elect Barack Obama nominated Mary Schapiro to serve as chairwoman of the SEC, replacing Christopher Cox. Making the formal announcement during a December 18, 2008, press conference, Obama said the scandal surrounding Bernard Madoff, his investment firm, and the SEC's failure for a decade to follow up on tips about Madoff's activities reminded the public of the need for regulatory reform. Schapiro has been chairman...(read more)

12/19/08 -- SEC Adopts Final Rule Amendments on XBRL, Approves 2009 PCAOB Budget

2008-12-19T00:00:00Z

12/19/08 -- SEC Adopts Final Rule Amendments on XBRL, Approves 2009 PCAOB Budget The SEC approved final rule amendments requiring public companies and mutual funds to provide disclosure information using eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), and adopted a new rule that will define the terms annuity contract and optional annuity contract under the Securities Act of 1933 at a December 17, 2008, open meeting. In late May, the SEC issued a proposed rule on the adoption of XBRL for companies...(read more)

12/18/08 -- Proposed FSP No. FAS 141(R)-a Would Amend Subsequent Measurement of Contingencies Acquired in a Business Combination

2008-12-18T00:00:00Z

12/18/08 -- Proposed FSP No. FAS 141(R)-a Would Amend Subsequent Measurement of Contingencies Acquired in a Business Combination The FASB issued Proposed FASB Staff Position (FSP) No. FAS 141(R)-a, Accounting for Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed in a Business Combination That Arise from Contingencies, on December 15, 2008. If approved, the proposed guidance would amend the accounting for assets and liabilities arising from contingencies in a business combination under SFAS No. 141(R), Business...(read more)

12/17/08 -- Cox Emphasizes Benefits of Fair Value Accounting, Independent Standard-Setting

2008-12-17T00:00:00Z

12/17/08 -- Cox Emphasizes Benefits of Fair Value Accounting, Independent Standard-Setting With the SEC nearing completion of its congressionally mandated study of mark-to-market accounting, the agency's chairman said the final document is likely to reaffirm the role this area of guidance plays for investors and accounting practitioners. ?Most investors, and many others, agree that fair value is a meaningful and transparent measure of an investment for financial reporting purposes,? said Christopher...(read more)

12/16/08 -- SEC to Discuss Final Rule on XBRL Disclosures

2008-12-16T00:00:00Z

12/16/08 -- SEC to Discuss Final Rule on XBRL Disclosures The SEC will meet on December 17, 2008, to discuss a series of rulemaking proposals, including the use of the eXtensible business reporting language, mutual fund disclosures with interactive data, and annuity contracts. The five commissioners will also consider whether to adopt the PCAOB?s 2009 budget. In late May, the SEC issued a proposed rule on the adoption of XBRL for companies to file their financial reports. Release No. 33-8924, Interactive...(read more)

12/15/08 -- Credit Crisis and Accounting for Financial Assets Will Be Addressed in Upcoming Board Meetings

2008-12-15T00:00:00Z

12/15/08 -- Credit Crisis and Accounting for Financial Assets Will Be Addressed in Upcoming Board Meetings The FASB will have a busy prelude to the holiday season, based on its agenda for the week of December 15, 2008. The Board will hold a special meeting on December 15 to discuss accounting for financial instruments during the credit crisis and the input it has received on financial reporting issues arising from the global credit crisis. The input came from recent roundtable discussions and numerous...(read more)

12/12/08 -- FASB Will Hold Series of Meetings on Conceptual Framework Definition of a 'Reporting Entity'

2008-12-12T00:00:00Z

12/12/08 -- FASB Will Hold Series of Meetings on Conceptual Framework Definition of a 'Reporting Entity' The FASB approved a staff schedule for future discussions and the issuance of an exposure draft on a conceptual framework for reporting entities, when it met for its December 10, 2008, weekly meeting in Norwalk, CT. The Board agreed with staff estimates that an exposure draft for this segment of the conceptual framework could be issued sometime in the second half of 2009. They also...(read more)

12/11/08 -- SEC Chief Accountant Continues Push for IFRS, XBRL

2008-12-11T00:00:00Z

12/11/08 -- SEC Chief Accountant Continues Push for IFRS, XBRL Clear and straightforward financial reporting provides investors with the best information, and that is the best argument for the U.S. adoption of IFRS, said Conrad Hewitt, the SEC's chief accountant. Hewitt, who is one of several senior agency officials who is planning on leaving the agency within the next month or two, gave his assessment of IFRS and some other key SEC initiatives, including interactive data and the agency's...(read more)

12/10/08 -- SEC Issues Release No. 34-59062 to Improve Disclosures in Municipal Bond Market

2008-12-10T00:00:00Z

12/10/08 -- SEC Issues Release No. 34-59062 to Improve Disclosures in Municipal Bond Market The SEC issued Release No. 34-59062, Amendment to Municipal Securities Disclosure, on December 5, 2008. The final rule amends some of the requirements regarding the information that the broker-dealers and underwriters have to get from issuers in floating a municipal bond offering. The rule becomes effective July 1, 2009. Brokers and underwriters have to determine that the issuer, or the issuer's representative...(read more)

12/09/08 -- In Release No. 34-59036, SEC Grants Accelerated Approval for Options Clearing Corporation Rule

2008-12-09T00:00:00Z

12/09/08 -- In Release No. 34-59036, SEC Grants Accelerated Approval for Options Clearing Corporation Rule On December 1, 2008, the SEC granted accelerated approval of a proposed rule change to the Options Clearing Corporation's stock loan and hedge program. Release No. 34-59036, Self-Regulatory Organizations; The Options Clearing Corporation; Order Granting Accelerated Approval of a Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Stock Loan/Hedge Program, approves three rule changes to the program under...(read more)

12/08/08 -- FASB Will Launch its Accounting Standards Codification in July 2009

2008-12-08T00:00:00Z

12/08/08 -- FASB Will Launch its Accounting Standards Codification in July 2009 The FASB said December 4, 2008, that the Accounting Standards Codification will go live July 1, 2009, replacing all U.S. GAAP from the FASB, the AICPA, the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF), and other sources. After that date, the Codification will be the only source of authoritative GAAP. All other accounting literature will be considered non-authoritative guidance. "U.S. GAAP will be completely reconfigured in...(read more)

12/05/08 -- SEC Adopts One Final Rule on Rating Agencies, Proposes Amendments to Others

2008-12-05T00:00:00Z

12/05/08 -- SEC Adopts One Final Rule on Rating Agencies, Proposes Amendments to Others The SEC stopped short of adopting sweeping changes to the rules governing credit rating agencies, and instead approved a series of heightened disclosure requirements and re-issued a proposal addressing conflicts of interest in a December 3, 2008, meeting. The amendments that were approved came from Release No. 33-8940, Security Ratings. In a reversal from a proposed rule change issued in July, the Commission did...(read more)

12/04/08 -- SEC Warns Brokerage and Fund Management Officials to Not Stint on Compliance Programs

2008-12-04T00:00:00Z

12/04/08 -- SEC Warns Brokerage and Fund Management Officials to Not Stint on Compliance Programs Lori Richards, the SEC?s compliance director, sent an open letter to SEC-registered companies on December 2, 2008, to remind them that as they consider ways to cut costs, they should remember the critical role played by compliance programs in meeting obligations under the securities laws. "Firms must be vigilant and proactive in preventing, detecting and correcting problems that could occur,"...(read more)

12/03/08 -- FASB Approves EITF Guidance and Proposals

2008-12-03T00:00:00Z

12/03/08 -- FASB Approves EITF Guidance and Proposals During its November 24, 2008, meeting, the FASB endorsed five decisions the Emerging Issues Task Force reached two weeks earlier on five issues. Three of the EITF issues ratified by the Board were task force consensuses: ? Issue No. 08-6, Equity Method Investment Accounting Considerations, ? Issue No. 08-7, Accounting for Defensive Intangible Assets, and ? Issue No. 08-8, Accounting for an Instrument (or an Embedded Feature) with a Settlement...(read more)

12/02/08 -- Nasdaq Proposal in SEC Release No. 34-59014 Would Require Partnerships to Get Shareholder Approval Before Issuing Stock Options

2008-12-02T00:00:00Z

12/02/08 -- Nasdaq Proposal in SEC Release No. 34-59014 Would Require Partnerships to Get Shareholder Approval Before Issuing Stock Options The Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. proposed a rule amendment that would require limited partnerships to seek shareholder approval before issuing stock options as compensation to employees, officers, directors, or consultants in a rule proposal filed with the SEC on November 25, 2008. Release No. 34-59014, Notice of filing of a Proposed rule Change to Require Limited Partnerships...(read more)

12/01/08 -- SEC Staff Issues Guidance For Proxy Statements Under the TARP

2008-12-01T00:00:00Z

12/01/08 -- SEC Staff Issues Guidance For Proxy Statements Under the TARP The SEC issued staff guidance for financial institutions filing proxy statements for securities purchases under the government?s financial bailout package, known as the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Under the Treasury Department?s Capital Purchase Program, announced in October, financial institutions seeking to issue securities may be required to solicit and obtain shareholder approval for the authorization of the securities...(read more)

11/26/08 -- FASB Says Entities with Interests in SPEs Will Have to Reveal Maximum Loss Exposures

2008-11-26T00:00:00Z

11/26/08 -- FASB Says Entities with Interests in SPEs Will Have to Reveal Maximum Loss Exposures The FASB approved a recommendation from its research staff that loan originators and servicers with stakes in special purpose entities disclose their maximum exposures to potential losses in the off-balance-sheet vehicles. With the decision, which was reached by the Board during a November 24, 2008, meeting, the FASB is ready to proceed with publication of the final version of the Proposed FASB Staff...(read more)

11/25/08 -- In Release No. IC-28487, the SEC Provides Exemption for Money Funds Getting Treasury Backing

2008-11-25T00:00:00Z

11/25/08 -- In Release No. IC-28487, the SEC Provides Exemption for Money Funds Getting Treasury Backing The SEC adopted an interim final temporary rule on November 20, 2008, to provide money market funds participating in the Treasury Department's $50 billion temporary guaranty program relief from certain provisions under the Investment Company Act of 1940. In Release No. IC-28487, Temporary Exemption for Liquidation of Certain Money Market Funds, the SEC is adopting Rule 22e-3T to provide an...(read more)