Blog

On March 9th, President Biden issued an executive order encouraging the federal government to research and respond to the use of digital assets including cryptocurrency. The order, which focused primarily on research requirements, asks the Federal Reserve to research Central Bank Digital Currencies.

As the Student Outreach & Initiatives Coordinator with the WSCPA, I have spent a lot of that time speaking to students across Washington State who are either just beginning their education in accounting or who are just learning about the accounting profession. One question that these students regularly ask is, “Why did you choose accounting?”

The SEC has proposed new environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting and disclosure requirements for public companies. For larger companies, it would also include an attestation requirement regarding greenhouse gas disclosures. Comments are due 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, or May 20, whichever is later.

In February I announced that after 40 years the WSCPA would be selling its 9,000 square-foot building. The day the building went up for sale offers starting coming in. We accepted an offer and the building sold at the end of February. There is still time for you to say goodbye to the building before the end of June, when we will be moving. I hope you can join us at an upcoming event.

On Friday, March 4, 2022, House Bill 1648 and Senate Bill 5519 were each passed unanimously in the State Legislature. These bills were previously passed unanimously as they worked their way through the legislature. Both bills are identical and will implement a new CPA – Inactive license status while phasing out the previously issued Certificates. They have been sent to Governor Jay Inslee where he is expected to sign one of the bills into law in the coming weeks.

As NASBA gets ready to transition the CPA exam to its new format, current students are eager to know what happens if a part they passed changes and how that would be considered for the new exam.

The AICPA's Government Audit Quality Center (GAQC) has released four tools that can help auditors make sense of auditing provider relief funds. It addresses the unique HHS audit requirements as well as how to handle parent/subsidiary relationships. The GAQC has made these available to the public and you do NOT need to be a GAQC member to access.

The Board of Directors is pleased to announce the nominees for the Society's 2022-2023 Board of Directors. All nominees will be declared elected by the secretary at the annual meeting unless other nominations, supported by at least one percent of membership, are received by April 1, 2022.

On February 24, 2022, the AICPA and 52 state CPA societies sent a letter to Assistant Treasury Secretary Lily Batchelder and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig regarding widespread concerns on the Schedules K-2 and K-3 reporting.

While much of the focus of the implementation of SAS 134-140 has been on the financial statement report and the Single Audit report, it is important to note that the when the AICPA issued updated examples in their A&A guide, it included changes to the Yellow Book report as well.

The AICPA's Healthcare Expert Panel has issued a Technical Q&A regarding the accounting for vaccines that were provided during the pandemic. The guidance applies to nonprofits and for-profit entities.

Many of the students slated for spring and summer 2022 internships will sit for the new, CPA Evolution-aligned CPA Exam, which is expected to launch in early 2024. This has implications for firms in a variety of areas, from recruiting considerations to engagement with academia. The time to start plotting out your firm’s strategy is now.

The AICPA has issued an exposure draft addressing AU-C 935, Compliance Audits. This section is used when performing Single Audits. The appendix references were in need of an update from other recently issued SASs.

On February 9, the IRS announced that it would suspend notices and letters for unfiled returns and unpaid balances. The IRS said it was doing this in recognition of the fact that the returns may have, in fact, been filed but not yet processed due to the agency’s significant backlog.

When your CPA license is up for renewal, you must enter your completed CPE into the CPE Tracker when you renew. This step is now mandatory for license renewals.

Although change is often labeled as scary, the WSCPA is excited about a change we are making. After 40 years in our building, the WSCPA is going to be selling its 9,000 square-foot building.

FASB has issued a new Chapter to the Concepts Statements focusing on Presentation. Presentation includes how the elements are presented as totals and subtotals on the face of the financial statements. While Concept Statements are not GAAP, they are the theory used by the board to create GAAP.

The conversation around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) should be at the forefront of all discussions at all levels within organizations to align with and create an innovative and sustainable future. In professional service firms, specifically accounting – defining and crafting DEI goals and initiatives is critical in fostering a diverse and inclusive culture.

The launch of income tax filing season last week comes as taxpayers and preparers are already feeling frustration with the IRS over unprocessed prior year returns and unanswered correspondence.

FASB has issued an exposure draft which would require additional disclosure about supplier financing arrangements sometimes referred to as reverse factoring. These disclosures would provide users with information about the agreements and the location of the obligation in the financial statements. Comments are due March 21.