Financial Accounting Standards Research Initiative

Over a year ago, the FAF adopted a new program that would review major standards that have been outstanding for a period of time to assess whether the standard has achieved its financial reporting objectives.  This post-implementation review process was meant to improve the standard-setting process and facilitate more effective FAF oversight of the FASB [...] Read more > >

Hopefully, you have all heard by now that the Monday morning plenary speaker in Denver at the AAA Meetings is Bob Herz, former Chair of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The format of his presentation will be slightly different from the traditional format. That is, Mr. Herz has agreed to address questions that have been [...] Read more > >

In 1957, the Princeton Press published Milton Friedman’s famous book, A Theory of the Consumption Function.  An interesting assumption underlying the theory is that “the transitory components of consumption and income can be taken to be uncorrelated with the corresponding permanent components and with each, other.” One of the key inferences is that permanent (smoothed) consumption [...] Read more > >

Never try to come up with research proposals while opening presents on Christmas morning . . . unfortunately, I came to this knowledge a couple of days too late. So, here are some things to consider: Does Santa’s fiscal year end on Dec 25? If so, when does he conduct his annual inventory count? If not, does he [...] Read more > >

Oh how time flies. Just over a year ago I took the GMAT. While I spent a good deal of time preparing for the GMAT, I think I spent at least as much time trying to figure out where I wanted my GMAT scores to be sent. That was one of the most difficult parts of [...] Read more > >

I have been in residence at the FASB for one week and I must admit that my head is spinning with all the opportunities to get involved. I want to do them all! It’s been quite a first week. The day after I arrived Bob Herz announced his retirement effective September 30th — I hope [...] Read more > >

I’ve got a research question I’m hoping someone can help with. I’m looking for prior research where a single agent reports to multiple principals. For example, a single employee reports to his direct boss and to his product manager or a CFO reports to the Board and to the CEO, etc. How does the multiple principal/multiple [...] Read more > >

A few weeks ago I posted a link to an interview with William Isaac where he calls some of the FASB board members “Religious Zealots.” Since then I’ve been pointed to a rebuttal article I enjoyed reading (these fair value arguments can be so much fun). To prove his point (and ours, unwittingly), he made this prodigious [...] Read more > >

Certain transactions are inherently difficult to account for. Investments in illiquid financial instruments may be impossible to value without heavy reliance on unverifiable assumptions from management. Transactions that include explicit or implicit rights of return must be recorded as sales or as a bundle of options, neither of which is quite accurate. [...] Read more > >

Could AAA publications do this?  Submit to The Accounting Review, get rejected, but have your reports forwarded to a Section journal or Horizons for a decision there.  Read more about what the field of economics is doing here. Read more > >