Friday Footnotes: KPMGers Happily Take Slashed Pay; New CPA Model Still a Go; No Rona Accounting | 5.22.20

AICPA Council supports advancement of new CPA licensure model [Journal of Accountancy] An effort to transform the CPA licensure model took a step forward Wednesday when the AICPA governing Council voted to support its advancement during its virtual spring meeting. Council voted to support the CPA Evolution initiative, which is being undertaken by the AICPA and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) to ensure that the CPA credential will continue to reflect the rapidly changing skills and competencies that accounting professionals need today and will need in the future. If NASBA’s board of directors votes to support the initiative at its virtual meeting this summer, the new model will become the framework for CPA licensure in the future.

Virus accounting maneuvers criticized by European authorities [Accounting Today] Europe’s top markets watchdog is warning companies against getting creative with financial statements that obscure the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on their bottom line. In guidance ahead of companies’ half-year results, the European Securities and Markets Authority said on Wednesday that firms shouldn’t separate the impact of the virus from overall profits and losses.

AICPA Says Treasury and SBA PPP Loan Forgiveness Application Leaves Many Questions [CPA Practice Advisor] The Treasury Department and Small Business Administration have released a loan forgiveness application form for the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which had been urgently sought by CPA firms and their small business clients in recent weeks. The document and related instructions partially address some outstanding issues but leave others unaddressed and, more importantly, still do not provide enough flexibility for those who receive funds, according to the American Institute of CPAs.

FASB Delays New Accounting Rules for Some Private Companies, Nonprofits [Wall Street Journal] The Financial Accounting Standards Board extended the implementation period for new accounting rules on revenue recognition and leases for certain companies to give them more time to address the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. To carry out accounting changes, private companies often rely on technology investments or additional staffing. The pandemic has disrupted allocations of some of those resources, FASB Chairman Russell Golden said.

IRS Trying to Fix Issue that Kicked Users Off Transcript System [Bloomberg Tax] The agency in an email alert late Thursday said it’s aware that permitted users may have lost access to the system and is working to restore that access. The agency urged users in need of immediate assistance to call the IRS. The agency didn’t return a request for additional comment.

Foreign Companies May Lose Access to U.S. Capital Markets Under Just-Passed Senate Legislation [JD Supra] A recently passed Senate bill would eliminate the ability of a company to access U.S. investors through the public capital markets if the company uses an auditor in a foreign jurisdiction that does not permit inspection by U.S. regulators. Under the bill, public companies that are based in or have affiliates in China, France or Belgium could be banned from having their stock and bonds traded within the U.S.

Porthcawl accountant who wrote guide to beating taxman sentenced for fraud [BBC] Former taxman Martyn Arthur claimed he “knew the system inside out” – but was arrested for cheating HM Revenue and Customs. Arthur, 68, wrote The Taxpayer Strikes Back about how to “stand up to” HMRC after leaving it to go into private accountancy. Judge Michael Fitton told Arthur he had “destroyed” his reputation. “You are now professionally worthless,” he said.

99% of KPMG’s employees accept 20% voluntary pay cut [Consultancy.com.au] Nearly all of KPMG’s staff in Australia have accepted a controversial temporary measure – earning 20% less while working the same number of hours – in a move that is designed at softening the Covid-19 hit and safeguarding employment at the accounting and consulting giant.

New AICPA Chair: Accountants’ Experience Needed Now More Than Ever [AICPA] Tracey Golden, CPA, CGMA, an audit partner with Deloitte, was elected on May 20 as the new chair of the AICPA. Her one-year term will begin on June 1. She will also serve as chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. Golden spent the past year as vice chair of the AICPA and has held several other volunteer leadership positions within the organization. [And she’s also married to outgoing FASB Chairman Russell Golden.]