Stanford University Financial Accounting Standards Board Discussion Questions
Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Visit the FASB website. Use the FASB Codification to locate the archived FASB Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 100. What does it discuss?What reasons were given for this deferral?What finally happened to SFAS No. 96?Is this an example of how the FASB at times modifies its position by listening to constituent comments? Why, or why not?Do you think constituent input into the FASB's due process adds value, or does it put the FASB in the middle of a political process that may limit the neutrality of FASB's standards? Do the discussion first then do the response each posted below. Posted1 The Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 100 discusses deferring the effective date of SFAS No. 96 to after December 15th, 1989 (FASB.org, 1988). The deferral came about through requests to give businesses and their auditors more time to "study, understand, and apply its provisions" (FASB.org, 1988). SFAS No. 96 was eventually superseded by SFAS No.109 in 1992 (FASB.org, 1992). I think these amendments and superseding ordinances show that FASB is willing to modify their decisions to better fit business practices. Clearly, the time frame given to businesses to implement SFAS No.96 was not sufficient and FASB made adjustments. I think this process of listening to constituent feed back is important. All new policies are theoretical until they are implemented. Once implemented, you will see how useful a policy is by paying attention to how the effected parties react. Without being able to receive feedback, FASB would not be able to evaluate how practical or effective their standards are. References FASB.org. Fas 100 (as Issued) (Superseded), 1988, https://www.fasb.org/jsp/FASB/Document_C/DocumentPage?cid=1218220123491&acceptedDisclaimer=true. FASB.org. Fas 100 (as Issued) (Superseded), 1988, https://www.fasb.org/jsp/FASB/Document_C/DocumentPage?cid=1218220123491&acceptedDisclaimer=true. Posted 2 The SFAS No. 100 ended up being in the "other sources" portion of the codification. it discusses Accounting for Income Taxes. It also is a deferral of the effective date of FASB statement 96 as well as a general amendment to FASB statement 96. The bored was given requests to delay the effective date of the statement to give companies and their auditors more time to understand and apply the provisions that the FASB made. because of this, the board decided to delay the effective date. SFAS no. 96 effective date was officially delayed for one full year (dec 15, 1989 instead of Dec 15, 1988). the FASB established the "e FASB Statement No. 96 Implementation Group to assist in identifying and considering issues encountered in implementing the provisions of Statement 96. As an outgrowth of the Group's discussions, the FASB identified specific implementation issues that it plans to incorporate, together with answers to those issues, in a Special Report that it expects to publish in the near future." The FASB often allows for the community to express their concerns or comments on all statements, ensuring that everyone is happy with the final outcome. The majority of people were actually happy with the deferral, so they went ahead and did it. I believe that constituent input into the FASB's due process adds value to the entire process. in my opinion, a reason why FASB is such a great standard setter is because they welcome input from outside sources. All of that input is public and reviewed by the board. FASB prides itself in being neutral with all of its decisions. FASB Accounting Standards Codification®. (n.d.). Asc.fasb.org. https://asc.fasb.org/ Posted 3 What does it discuss? Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 100 discusses the deferral of No. 96, which applies to accounting for income taxes (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1988). • What reasons were given for this deferral? The primary reason for the deferral was to allow entities more time to study and understand the provisions of Statement 96. It was complex and this was exacerbated by the requirement for entities to apply the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1988). • What finally happened to SFAS No. 96? SFAS No. 96 was superseded by FAS 109 (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1992). • Is this an example of how the FASB at times modifies its position by listening to constituent comments? Why, or why not? Yes, I think this is a two-fold example of the FASB modifying its position. First, they listened to requests to push back the implementation date for SFAS No. 96 (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1988). Second, FAS 109 came about because the FASB received requests to amend SFAS No. 96 (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1992). The FASB was receiving these requests even before they decided to move the date back (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 1988). • Do you think constituent input into the FASB's due process adds value, or does it put the FASB in the middle of a political process that may limit the neutrality of FASB's standards? I think that it does add value because it allows the FASB to hear opinions other than their own. There probably is a risk that the FASB could end up in the middle of political processes, but generally, I think it aids the neutrality of FASB’s standards by allowing them to hear and consider opinions and potential results they may not have considered before. References Financial Accounting Standards Board (1988). Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 100. Financial Accounting Standards Board (1992). Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 109.