Insights

A Senate bill offers Sarbanes-Oxley exemptions for small banks. Discover what this means for financial regulations.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) wrapped up talks on the Proposed Accounting Standards Update, Debt (Topic 470): Simplifying the Classification of Debt in a Classified Balance Sheet (Current versus Noncurrent).

James Doty, current chairman of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”) of the Securities and Exchanges Commission (“SEC”), will step down once the commission has found his successor, according to an SEC announcement on August 11, 2017. Once that successor has been found and named, a date for Doty’s final day will be announced. The SEC has the authority to appoint PCAOB members under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

The Council on Financial Assistance Reform has issued a revised frequently asked questions (“FAQs”) document on the Office Management and Budget’s (“OMB”) Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 CFR 200. Updated as of July 2017, the document features 24 new FAQs and four revised FAQs.

When negotiating a contract price, the primary concern of contracting officers (“CO’s”) should be the price that the government will pay to obtain the required supplies or services from a responsible contractor.

A new Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) proposal seeks to replace out-of-date deferred tax guidance regarding bad debt reserves for savings and loans that began after December 31, 1987, as well as guidance concerning the Comptroller of the Currency’s Banking Circular 202, Accounting for Net Deferred Tax Charges (Circular 202).

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (“GASB”) has issued GASB Statement No. 85, Omnibus 2017, to address the following accounting and financial reporting matters:

Later this year, some companies will be required to change the way they present expenses related to retirement benefits. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) has issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2017-07, Compensation—Retirement Benefits (Topic 715): Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost, which is intended to improve the presentation of pension costs.

In Exelis, Inc., ASBCA No. 60131 (29 Aug. 2016), the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“ASBCA”) held that a concern whether a building lease was a capital lease or an operating lease is not subject to Cost Accounting Standards (“CAS”) 404.