January 2001
Accounting and Auditing Resources on the Web
By Simon Petravick and L. Murphy Smith
Because the organizations that create accounting and auditing standards maintain websites, the World Wide Web now presents a convenient way to keep current on technical developments. Moreover, many questions on accounting and auditing issues can be answered by searching sites that provide accounting and auditing related information, researching sites that contain the authoritative pronouncements, submitting questions to specialists, or posting questions to online forums (See the Sidebar).
Financial Accounting
Financial Accounting Standards Board. This site is helpful for following FASB and Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) activities. The “publications” section contains summaries of all FASB Statements that are Category A GAAP. The EITF section under the “technical projects” link provides a summary of EITF current issues and indicates whether a consensus has been reached. This link also provides access to the technical inquiry service, which consists of an online form for submitting questions about FASB literature and projects. The site includes meeting agendas, exposure drafts, press releases, a quarterly plan of technical items under review, and e-mail addresses for FASB board members and staff.
Governmental Accounting Standards Board. GASB establishes financial reporting standards applicable to state and local governmental entities. The site’s “publications” section contains summaries of three categories of GAAP: GASB Statements (Category A); GASB Interpretations (Category A); and GASB Concept Statements (Category E). The site has other items related to GASB activities: exposure drafts, news releases, agendas for board meetings, and GASB’s Technical Project Plan, which details project objectives and status. The “performance measures” section has extensive information about reporting on service efforts and accomplishments. The “communicate” section provides e-mail addresses and phone numbers for GASB board members and staff.
Accounting Standards Team. The objectives of the Accounting Standards Team are to determine the AICPA’s technical policies regarding financial accounting and reporting standards and serve as spokesperson on these matters; to provide guidance to AICPA members on financial accounting or reporting issues not otherwise covered in authoritative literature; and to influence the form and content of pronouncements from FASB, GASB, the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC), and other bodies with authority over financial accounting or reporting standards. This website’s resources also include highlights of recent AcSEC meetings, newsletters, meeting dates, and exposure drafts.
Securities and Exchange Commission. Accountants of public companies will find useful links in the “current SEC rulemaking” section of this website. The “proposed rules” link lists rule proposals related to accounting and other SEC matters; comments may be submitted by e-mail. The “final rules” section lists final rules currently available. The site also lists recent pronouncements, such as Staff Accounting Bulletins (SAB) Nos. 94–101B. New SABs and concept and interpretative releases can be found in this section.
Accountants will be interested in the “other commission notices and information” section. For example, the Division of Corporation Finance has posted a “Frequently Requested Accounting and Financial Reporting Interpretations and Guidance” document that explains many issues related to accounting rules and disclosures.
Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board. At its October 1999 meeting, AICPA Council adopted a resolution recognizing the FASAB as the body responsible for establishing GAAP for federal government entities. In response to Council’s vote, the Accounting Standards Board (ASB) proposed recognizing FASAB statements as Category A GAAP. FASAB standards and concepts are posted on its website.
Auditing
Audit and Attest Standards. This site distributes information about ASB pronouncements. The “technical activities and publications” section includes summaries of recently issued SASs and SSAEs, as well as interpretations of all SASs and SSAEs.
The site also provides a wealth of information about ASB activities, including highlights of each ASB meeting and “In Our Opinion,” a quarterly publication of the Audit and Attest Standards Team. Finally, interested parties can obtain exposure drafts and other documents, such as the AICPA’s “Audit Issues in Revenue Recognition” paper or the Big Five’s “Audit Materiality White Paper.”
Independence Standards Board. The ISB establishes independence standards applicable to the audits of public companies. The website’s “document express” section provides a concise list of material issued by the ISB and the Independence Issues Committee, which assists the ISB in establishing standards. The “request an interpretation” section contains a form for submitting online inquiries to the ISB staff.
GAO Governmental Auditing Standards. The Yellow Book contains standards for audits of government organizations, programs, activities, and functions and for government assistance received by contractors, nonprofit organizations, and other nongovernment organizations. The complete Yellow Book is available at this site, and the quick posting of exposure drafts and recently issued standards makes the site valuable for keeping current. For example, GAS Amendment No. 2 was available electronically in July 1999, but printed copies were not available until September. The site also carries highlights and notices of Advisory Council meetings.
Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996. This site provides the complete text of the Single Audit Act (Public Law 104-156), which establishes uniform requirements for audits of federal awards administered by nonfederal entities.
Office of Management and Budget. Under this site’s “grants management” section, one can find the full text of OMB Circular A–133, “Audits of States, Local Governments, and Nonprofit Organizations,” a circular that establishes uniform audit requirements for nonfederal entities that administer federal awards and implement the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996. The site also provides the March 2000 Compliance Supplement, which identifies existing important compliance requirements that the federal government expects to be considered as part of an audit required by the 1996 amendments. This site will be useful to auditors tracking changes to OMB Circular A-133 and the supplement.
International Accounting and Auditing
International Accounting Standards Committee. The IASC website provides a detailed summary of International Accounting Standards (which are Category E GAAP), as well as news releases, information on IASC operations and projects, and a quiz about international standards.
International Federation of Accountants. The International Auditing Practices Committee of IFAC develops several auditing pronouncements (e.g., International Standards on Auditing, International Auditing Practice Statements, and Audit Risk Alerts). The site lists exposure drafts and activities of several IFAC committees, such as ethics, education, and financial and management accounting, and task forces that address special topics.
Research and Publications
The CPA Journal. The CPA Journal’s own website includes software downloads, Internet resources, and searchable online archives of past issues going back to 1989.
Professional Ethics Team. This site allows accountants and auditors to access the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct and learn about new ethics rulings and interpretations. The code has two sections: principles and rules. The principles provide the framework for the rules, which govern performance of professional services.
Pro2NetAccounting. This website contains many resources in the categories of news, research, products, and community and includes links to websites for accounting journals, state CPE requirements, colleges, and the top 100 accounting firms. Pro2Net sells online CPE and subscriptions to online versions of the Wiley GAAP, GAAP for Governments, Not-for-Profit GAAP, International Accounting Standards, and GAAS guides.
NYSSCPA Ask an Expert. This site accepts questions related to accounting, auditing, assurance services, and other topics via an online form. Website editors moderate the questions and post responses online, arranged according to topic.
The Forums at AICPA Online. These forums are unmoderated online discussion areas covering accounting and auditing and other subjects. Individuals post questions and colleagues with similar interests can respond. A user creates a login name and password, then views or participates in question-and-answer discussions on a subject of interest.
AuditNet. AuditNet provides electronic audit-related information. KARL (Kaplan’s AuditNet resource list) contains links to more than 950 Web resources for auditors. ASAP (auditor’s sharing audit programs) contains more than 150 audit programs that can be freely used and modified. Information is easy to locate through the site’s menus or search engine.
ITAudit.org. Users that register for a free subscription to this website can access an online reference library that provides links and additional information, a conference area offering threaded discussions and online chat rooms, and additional articles posted in the forum.
Accounting Organizations
American Institute of CPAs. The AICPA is the largest national accounting association in the United States, and it and its predecessors have served the accounting profession since 1887. The AICPA’s mission is to provide members with the resources, information, and leadership that enable them to provide valuable services in the highest professional manner to benefit the public as well as employers and clients.
New York State Society of CPAs. The NYSSCPA is the largest and oldest state accounting organization. The “professional resources” section of the website contains summaries of FASB and GASB pronouncements and exposure drafts. The website is updated often and includes centers with documents and discussion areas on current topics, such as auditor independence and multidisciplinary practices.
Institute of Internal Auditors. The IIA serves more than 70,000 members in 100 countries and is the world leader in certification, education, research, and technological guidance for the internal auditing field.
American Accounting Association. The American Accounting Association promotes worldwide excellence in accounting education, research, and practice. The AAA is a voluntary organization for those interested in accounting education and research.
Institute of Management Accountants. The IMA is the leading professional organization devoted exclusively to management accounting and financial management. The IMA helps members stay abreast of the changes affecting the management accounting and financial management professions, providing new insight as well as ethical guidance. The website offers resources such as continuing education, online versions of Management Accounting Quarterly and Strategic Finance, and information about the IMA’s certification programs.
Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. This organization is dedicated to educating qualified individuals trained in the highly specialized aspects of detecting, investigating, and deterring fraud and white-collar crime. The website includes extensive resources for these specialists.
Search and Web Technology Tools
Web Search Tools. This website lists popular search engines, critical tools for using the Internet effectively. Search engines do not always provide the right information, so using them efficiently requires some knowledge of their structure and operation. (For further discussion, see “The Role for Web Search Engines” in the January 2000 CPA Journal.)
Information Technology
Whatis.com. This website contains definitions to numerous Web and information technology terms, as well as “where-to” links for finding and buying products, searching for a job, and other services.
Webopedia. This website contains an online dictionary and search engine. The site offers a Webopedia search utility that can be added to the browser’s toolbar, ready to be used when the definition of a technical term is needed. The site features links to e-commerce, ISP resources, downloads, bookstores, and Internet trade shows.
ISWorld Net. This website describes itself as “A vision of information systems scholars harnessing the Internet for the creation and dissemination of knowledge.” The site includes links to information services (IS) conferences, journals, and teaching resources.
Offline Browsers
Some say WWW stands for World Wide Wait, referring to the delays that can be common when browsing the Internet. One way to alleviate this problem is to use an offline browser, a program that automatically downloads web pages and saves them on a computer’s hard drive. The user can then review the stored pages as if they were being reviewed online.
Editors:
Paul D. Warner, PhD, CPA
Hofstra University
L.Murphy Smith, DBA, CPA
Texas A&M University
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