AICPA Economic Crisis and Recovery Center

What Government Entities Need to Know about American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009; New Online Resource for Government Audits

The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, signed into law on Feb. 17 to help spur the economy out of recession and enhance employment, could have a significant impact on your organization. This Government Accountability Brief has been prepared to help government entities understand the implications of ARRA. In addition, the AICPA’s Governmental Audit Quality Center has created the Recovery Act Resource Center on its website to assist auditors of governmental entities with finding important information related to ARRA.

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How Good Is Your Audit Firm?

Directorship, June 1, 2009

As the list of audit failures grows, so does the list of questions concerning audit quality.  This situation, coupled with the U.S. Treasury Department’s Advisory Committee on the Auditing Profession report, has fueled a debate on audit-quality indicators.  However, insights into a framework for evaluating audit quality, public reporting by audit firms, audit quality in other countries and annual transparency reporting help to further clarify an issue of mounting importance to the profession.

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Internal Auditors in Fraud Fear

Accountancy Age, July 9, 2009

A global KPMG study of more than 1,000 audit committee members brings a fresh perspective to the belief that the worst economic times can overpower the best in some people.  The study sheds new light on the number of internal auditors who believe there is more pressure to distort earnings figures since the recession took hold and committee members’ feelings on their ability to challenge the practice.

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Trade Groups Aim to Influence Accounting Standards

WebCPA, June 22, 2009

The Financial Instruments Reporting and Convergence Alliance (FIRCA), representing the financial, insurance, banking, real estate and other industries, is focusing on influencing the convergence efforts of the FASB and IASB and their steps to address the financial crisis.  This article explains the drive in the U.S. and abroad to revise accounting standards for financial instruments as well as the FIRCA’s key goals.

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Enough! It's Time to Enforce the Standards for Assurance on Governance, Risk Management, and Internal Controls

Internal Auditor, June 19, 2009

A Booz & Co. report – “Bringing Back Best Practices in Risk Management: Banks’ Three Lines of Defense” – raises thought-provoking opinions on the causes of the financial crisis, banks’ risk culture and lines of defense, and decision-making processes. This article features these and other key points of the report as well as suggestions for moving internal auditing from performing audits of controls to providing assurance of governance processes, risk management and related controls.

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Audit Implications of New PCAOB Staff Audit Practice Alert on Fair Value and OTTI

The Center for Audit Quality, June 10, 2009

The current economic environment and recent events in the capital markets have created a variety of financial statement audit implications in areas including, but not limited to, fair value measurements, internal control over financial reporting, accounting for estimates, impairment and disclosures. This Center for Audit Quality Alert details the recently issued PCAOB practice alert on fair value and OTTI.

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From Crisis to Confidence: What Is the Role of Regulation?

The CPA Journal, June 2009

To some, the financial crisis has revealed that the movement toward self-regulation and self-correcting powers of markets is an example of misplaced faith. This article explores the author’s opinion on the primary reasons why self-regulation and market discipline have failed, the steps and reforms needed for a return to confidence, and key insights into financial reporting and auditor performance.

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Recognizing the Red Flags of a Ponzi Scheme

The CPA Journal, June 2009

When Ponzi cases unravel, the remaining solvent party is often the CPA who performed the audit, due diligence of money managers or tax and investment advisory services.  However, by understanding Ponzi schemes and case law on the subject, analyzing and properly responding to liability risks, and watching for signs of fraudulent behavior, CPAs can boost their chances of keeping their firm, clients and reputation out of the headlines and harm’s way.

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The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009: A Primer for Audit Committees

On February 17, President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) into law to help stimulate the economy out of the recession. Here are some highlights of the ARRA and questions for Audit Committees to ask senior management.

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Survey Demonstrates Global Impact of Financial Crisis on Internal Audit Profession

The Institute of Internal Auditors, May 27, 2009

The IIA has taken its round table and North America survey focusing on the economic crisis’s impact on internal auditing to a global level with a survey that reflects responses from 1,665 internal auditors in 57 countries.  Survey results reveal new perspectives on areas such as risk management’s ability to mitigate the crisis, the redirection of internal audit resources to cover recession-related risks and the recession’s effect on internal audit resources.

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