It's Time to Simplify Accounting Standards
It's Time to Simplify Accounting Standards
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是时候简化会计准则了
DOI：
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发表时间：
1999
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Dennis R. Bekesford
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Dennis R. Bekesford
只要拒绝财务报告中的更多细节就行了。“所有衍生金融工具都是基于其公允价值的资产或负债。”“这些工具的损益反映在收入中，与抵销合格对冲头寸的亏损和收益相同。”这两个相对直截了当的声明是FASB第133号声明的精髓，即衍生品工具和对冲活动的会计，这是一个出色的声明，将导致这一重要领域长期需要改进的财务报告。然而，有一个缺点是，该报表长达245页，其中大部分是迄今为止所有会计准则中最复杂的文本之一。第133号声明的许多页都用来举例说明该标准如何在某些情况下适用。另一个重要的部分，“结论的基础”，包括了FASB对其立场的推理。这些部分有助于执行第133号报表。然而，会计师必须仔细阅读和理解全部245页，以确保报表被正确采纳--即使对于那些相对较少、对衍生品有很好理解的会计师来说，这也是一个艰巨的挑战。除了第133号声明的篇幅和复杂性--或者更有可能是因为这些声明--FASB还让所有五大会计师事务所帮助它准备了一门关于新准则的教育课程。一个由FASB发起的衍生品实施小组于9月初开始开会，预计将制定更详细的解释。FASB的新兴问题特别工作组(EITF)和SEC会计人员可能会及时介入，提供更多指导。令人遗憾的是，公认会计原则的这种复杂程度已更多地成为常态，而非例外。例如，财务会计准则委员会第125号报表《金融资产的转移和服务及负债的清偿会计》规定了资产在什么时候可以被视为出售，从而从资产负债表中删除。尽管第125号声明非常详细，但在声明发布后，许多各方要求财务会计准则委员会对证券化和某些其他常见交易的会计处理更加具体，因此EITF制定了几种解释。财务会计准则委员会本身正在修改某些方面的声明，财务会计准则委员会工作人员最近发布了一份文件，涵盖了许多其他执行问题和答案。所有这些都是为了帮助会计人员应用第125号报表中相当基本的概念，即当资产“不再受控”时，即被视为有效出售。不仅是FASB标准的长度或复杂性给公司、审计师或其他试图善意应用GAAP的人带来了挑战。GAAP的不同来源的数量增加了挑战。注册会计师再也不可能拿起一本出版物，找到关于某一特定主题的所有相关信息。除FASB声明外，以下所有来源也可能适用：*FASB解释*FASB技术公告*FASB工作人员问答出版物*EITF共识立场*FASB或SEC工作人员在EITF会议上的声明*AICPA立场声明*AICPA实践公告*AICPA审计指南*SEC工作人员会计公告更有问题的是，SEC预计上市公司将遵循SEC会计工作人员在各种会议上的演讲中提出的指导方针，特别是AICPA关于当前SEC发展的年度全国会议。因此，感兴趣的各方必须搜索上述来源--也许还有其他来源--看看是否有关于POINT的会计文献，然后决定它如何适用于正在审议的问题。…
Just say no to more detail in financial reporting. "All derivative financial instruments are assets or liabilities based on their fair value." "Gains and losses on those instruments are reflected in income in the same periods as offsetting losses and gains on qualifying hedged positions." These two relatively straightforward statements are the essence of FASB Statement no. 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities, an excellent pronouncement that will result in long-needed improved financial reporting in this important area. However, one drawback is that the statement runs 245 pages long, much of it among the most complex text of any accounting standard to date. Many pages of Statement no. 133 are devoted to examples of how the standard applies in certain contexts. Another hefty section, "Basis for Conclusions," includes FASB's reasoning for its positions. These sections are helpful to implementing Statement no. 133. However, accountants must carefully read and understand all 245 pages to ensure that the statement is adopted properly--a formidable challenge even for those relatively few accountants with a good understanding of derivatives. In addition to the length and complexity of Statement no. 133--or more likely because of them--FASB had all the Big Five accounting firms help it prepare an educational course on the new standard. A FASB-sponsored derivatives implementation group began meeting in early September and is expected to develop even more detailed interpretations. The FASB's emerging issues task force (EITF) and the SEC accounting staff may weigh in with still more guidance in time. CREEPING COMPLEXITY Regrettably, this level of complexity of generally accepted accounting principles has become more the norm than the exception. For example, FASB Statement no. 125, Accounting for Transfers and Servicing of Financial Assets and Extinguishment of Liabilities, specifies when assets can be considered sold for accounting purposes and thus removed from the balance sheet. Although Statement no. 125 is very detailed, after it was issued many parties asked FASB to be even more specific about the accounting for securitizations and certain other common transactions, so the EITF developed several interpretations. FASB itself is in the process of amending the statement in certain respects, and a document has been recently issued by FASB staff covering numerous other implementation questions and answers. All of this is designed to help accountants apply the fairly basic concept in Statement no. 125 that assets are considered effectively sold when they are "no longer controlled." It is not only the length or complexity of FASB standards that creates the challenge for companies, auditors or others attempting to apply GAAP in good faith. The number of different sources of GAAP creates an added challenge. No longer is it possible for a CPA to pick up a single publication and find all the pertinent information on a given subject. In addition to FASB statements, all the following sources may also apply: * FASB interpretations * FASB technical bulletins * FASB staff question-and-answer publications * EITF consensus positions * Announcements by FASB or SEC staff members at EITF meetings * AICPA statements of position * AICPA practice bulletins * AICPA audit guides * SEC staff accounting bulletins Even more problematic is that the SEC expects public companies to follow guidelines set out in speeches by SEC accounting staff members at various conferences, particularly the annual AICPA National Conference on Current SEC Developments. Thus, interested parties must search the above sources--and perhaps others, too--to see whether there is accounting literature on point and then decide how it applies to the issue under consideration. …