CPA Letter articles from February 2004

CPA Letter archives from February 2004

Financial literacy in America--the profession stakes a claim.(CPA Ambassador Program)(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Foundation)
February 1, 2004... Last month's CPA Letter unveiled the profession's new CPA Ambassador Program in which CPAs are being trained to go into their communities and reach out to the media to discuss four critical initiatives of the profession. One of those...

CPAs support financial literacy.(Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... In Dec., the AICPA polled members on financial literacy and volunteering, and asked whether the Institute should allocate resources in this area. Of the 1809 respondents, 95% felt financial literacy was extremely or very important. In fact, 15%...

AICPA committee application process begins; open until May 1.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Applications are now being accepted for the next committee year (Oct. 2004--Oct. 2005). If you are interested in contributing to the profession and networking with your peers, then consider applying. Go online to complete a brief Web-based...

AICPA produces "Work/Life: striking a balance" video.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A new video production from the AICPA Work/Life and Women's Initiatives Executive Committee successfully delivers the work/life message: Providing flexible work options leads to a more committed and loyal workforce and superior business...

Members offered airline, car rental, Amtrak discounts.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The AICPA has a special agreement with Carlson Wagonlit Travel--The Leaders Group, to assist you with travel arrangements (call 800/345-5540) when attending eligible AICPA conferences. If you prefer to make your own travel plans, mention the...

How to request copyright permission from AICPA.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Members and others who wish to reproduce content from any AICPA publication (or Web site) must first obtain copyright permission from the Institute. The procedure for requesting permission is to first display our Web site homepage on the...

CPA Letter supplements available.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... To obtain the public accounting, business and industry, government or education member-segment supplements produced this month with The CPA Letter, visit: www.aicpa.org/pubs/cpaltr/ feb2004/index.htm

Public meeting notices.(Public Notice)
February 1, 2004... Accounting Standards Executive Committee: Mar. 16-17, New York Auditing Standards Board: Feb. 24-26, Tempe, Ariz.

Chair's corner.(Change Management)
February 1, 2004... No matter what your position, no matter what your role, you are a party to historic change in your profession. Whether you are delighted or depressed, it is a fact that we have only one realistic option. Deal with it. I hope you will choose to...

Supply and Demand of Accounting Graduates Study for 2002 released--desire for master's degrees on the rise.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... According to the AICPA's recently released study for 2002, The Supply of Accounting Graduates and the Demand for Public Accounting Recruits, Master's degrees proved productive. The number of Master's degrees awarded nationwide increased by 11%,...

New CPA exam candidate booklet available; February webcast to explain computer-based test.(Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... With the computerized CPA Exam launching in Apr., the prior candidate booklet has been replaced with the new, comprehensive Uniform CPA Exam Candidate Bulletin, available exclusively online from www.cpa-exam.org. The 30-page booklet provides...

AICPA releases guidelines on outsourcing engagements.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Code of Professional Conduct)
February 1, 2004... In response to member inquiries regarding outsourcing engagements to third parties, AICPA General Counsel Richard I. Miller and Senior Vice President--Member and Public Interests Alan Anderson have developed a paper to help guide members...

DOL issues frequently asked questions on small pension plan audit waiver regulation.(regulatory mattes)(Department of Labor)(Employee Benefits Security Administration)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration recently issued frequently asked questions about the audit waiver requirements under the EBSA's Oct. 2000 Small Pension Plan Security Amendments. EBSA has received a variety of...

SEC issues Staff Accounting Bulletin 104.(regulatory matters)(Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of the Chief Accountant)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The Security and Exchange Commission's Office of the Chief Accountant and the Division of Corporation Finance have released Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 104, "Revenue Recognition." The bulletin updates portions of the interpretative guidance...

AICPA co-hosts November 2003 XBRL International Conference in Seattle.(technology)
February 1, 2004... Approximately 300 attendees from 20 countries attended the 8th XBRL International Conference in Seattle during the first week of Nov. 2003. Conference speakers included David Odell, CFO of Hyperion Solutions; Susan Strausberg, President and CEO...

XBRL-US releases updated taxonomies for public review.(technology)(US GAAP - Commercial and Industrial Taxonomy)(Generally Accepted Accounting Principles)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... XBRL-US has released an updated GAAP Commercial and Industrial (US-GAAP-CI) taxonomy as well as a new GAAP Banking and Savings Institution (US-GAAP-BASI) taxonomy for public review. XBRL taxonomies are a description and classification system...

Business, financial reporting applications get boost from latest XBRL release.(technology)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... XBRL International (www.xbrl.org), an AICPA-founded global consortium of more than 200 leading accounting, technology and financial services companies and government agencies, recently announced the recommended release of version 2.1 of its...

Internal Control Reporting--Implementing Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404.(now available)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Internal Control Reporting--Implementing Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 (No. 029200CPA02). Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires public companies to include a separate report on the assessment of the effectiveness of the entity's internal...

Successful Selling Strategies for CPA Firms.(now available)(Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Successful Selling Strategies for CPA Firms (VHS--No. 181191CPA02; DVD--No. 181190CPA02). In this video-course, James C. Metzler, CPA, AICPA VP--Small CPA Firm Interests, and Jennifer Wilson of ConvergenceCoaching, LLC, along with other...

The Team Approach to Tax, Financial & Estate Planning.(now available)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The Team Approach to Tax, Financial & Estate Planning (No. 017235CPA02) will educate practitioners in the various disciplines and sub-specialties of financial services, that may not be present in every firm, but which are essential to growing a...

FASB issues exposure drafts to improve accounting guidance, support convergence of global accounting standards.(accounting & auditing news)
February 1, 2004... The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued four exposure drafts that would improve U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and converge U.S. accounting guidance to existing international accounting standards. You can obtain the...

FASB now offers free audio webcasts of meetings, lower cost for telephone meetings.(accounting & auditing news)(Financial Accounting Standards Board)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... FASB meetings are now broadcast via audio Webcast, free of charge. Visit www.fasb.org to access the link to the Webcast. To listen to a recording of the most recent board meeting, click on the board meeting playback link on the homepage...

Disciplinary actions.
February 1, 2004... As a result of investigations of alleged violations of the Code of Professional Conduct of the AICPA and/or state CPA societies, the following ethics cases have been resolved by settlement agreement under the Joint Ethics Enforcement Program:...

Member firm expelled from SECPS.(Securities & Exchange Commission Practice Section)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... On Oct. 17, 2003, a hearing panel of the SEC Practice Section Executive Committee concluded that James C. Marshall, CPA, P.C. of Scottsdale, Ariz., was guilty of failing to comply with SEC Practice Section membership requirements and failing to...

Guidance issued on performing audits for privately held companies.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The AICPA recently distributed a letter to managing partners of firms that perform audits in response to auditors and their clients raising questions regarding the applicability and appropriateness of applying standards established by the...

Happenings at Board of Directors' December meeting.
February 1, 2004... Following are some of the more significant actions and events that took place at the AICPA Board of Directors' meeting Dec. 4-5, 2003: * Chairman of the Board Scott Voynich provided an update on his activities, including a concerted member...