...Chapter 01 Environment and Theoretical Structure of Financial Accounting True / False Questions 1. | The primary function of financial accounting is to provide relevant financial information to parties external to business enterprises. True False | 2. | Accrual accounting attempts to measure revenues and expenses that occurred during accounting periods so they equal net operating cash flow. True False | 3. | The FASB is currently the public-sector organization responsible for setting accounting standards in the United States. True False | 4. | The FASB's due process invites various interested parties to indicate their opinions about whether financial accounting standards should be changed. True False | 5. | Accounting for stock-based compensation is an area in which the FASB has received little political interference. True False | 6. | The Public Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002 (Sarbanes-Oxley) changed the entity responsible for setting auditing standards in the United States. True False | 7. | A rules-based approach to standard setting stresses professional judgment as opposed to following a list of rules. True False | 8. | Under federal securities laws, the SEC has the authority to set accounting standards in the United States. True False | 9. | The primary responsibility for properly applying GAAP when communicating with investors and creditors through...
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...ACC307 – Accounting Theory Assignment Name: Chun Ho Hui Student ID: na20150418 Case Study 1 Questions 1. Explain why principles-based standards require a conceptual framework. A: Conceptual framework can be defined as “an attempt to define the nature and purpose of accounting” (Team, 2015). Conceptual framework is essential for principle-based standards because it lays out a fundamental structure for principles-based standards. Setting the standard on and relate to an established body of concepts and objectives, enable FASB and IASB to “issue more useful and consistent standards over time” (Essays, 2013). For any future developments or armaments on the standards, the framework will ensure the changes will be within its fundamental concepts and will not get to a personal or an inconsistent standard. ACCA has mentioned “the availability of a conceptual framework could lead to ‘principles-based’ system whereby accounting standards are developed from an agreed conceptual basis with specific objectives” (Team, 2015), which in other words, a consistency on the principle-based standards and agreed on a common ground. Without a sound conceptual framework, principle-based standards could lead to inconsistency for users internally (accounting practitioners) and externally (report readers); bias on the use of standards and standard settings, which leads to misdirection on financial statements; and the difficulty of future developments on the standard itself (not been...
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...Property, Plant and Equipment Property, Plant and Equipment I- Nature of Accounting Issues Businesses purchase and use a variety of fixed assets, such as equipment, furniture, tools, machinery, buildings, and land. These fixed assets are long-term or relatively permanent assets. Also, they are tangible assets because they exist physically. They are owned and used by the business and are not offered for sale as part of normal operations. Perhaps the most descriptive titles these assets are known under are plant assets or property, plant and equipment. Depending on the industry, the plant assets of a business can be a significant part of its total assets. That is why the accounting for these long-term assets has important implications for a company’s reported results. In this paper, we discuss the proper accounting for the acquisition, use, and disposition of property, plant, and equipment. Before going over a brief overview of the nature of accounting issues, we ought to take a deeper look at what plant assets really are. The major characteristics of property, plant, and equipment are as follows: * They are acquired for use in operations and not for resale. Only assets used in normal business operations are classified as property, plant, and equipment. For example, an idle building is more appropriately classified separately as an investment. Also, land developers or sub dividers classify land as inventory. * They are long-term in nature and usually depreciated...
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...“Discuss and explore issues surrounding the recognition of elements in financial statements” Contents Title: 3 Introduction & Objectives 3 Definitions 5 Recognition 5 Measurement 6 Discussion 6 Revenue Recognition (IAS 18) 6 Property, Plant and Equipment (IAS 16) 8 Xerox Revenue Recognition Scandal 9 Recognition in the Annual Statements 10 Conclusion 13 Bibliography 14 Appendices 17 Appendix 1 – Standards from IASB 17 Appendix 2 – Proposed plan for FASB and IASB 18 Appendix 3 – TUI Travel Plc Annual Statement 21 Appendix 4 – Thomas Cook Annual Statement 27 Appendix 5 – PSA Peugeot Citroen Annual Statement 31 Appendix 6 – Daimler AG Annual Statement 37 Appendix 7 – Xerox Annual Statement 42 Title: Discuss and explore issues surrounding the recognition of elements in financial statements Introduction & Objectives Accounting has many elements to producing an annual statement each fiscal year; these different elements have regulations in which organisations have to abide by. Regulations have three categories; legislation, accounting standards and stock exchange regulations (Melville, 2008). Legislation can differ from country to country, which is the same for accounting standard board as each country has individually developed their own standards (Accounting Standards Board for the UK, also, International Accounting Standards Board that is trying to consolidate standards, which can be accepted globally). Attempts by...
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...international level around the globe. It examines the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the International Accounting Standards Board, the differences between the two boards, and the joint conceptual framework project that is in the process of being formulated. The history of the FASB and the different responsibilities it takes on itself regarding the conceptual framework and other issues are mentioned in the research results. The IASB and many of the elements of financial statements are defined within the paper. The joint project between the FASB and IASB is researched and the process it is currently going through on its way to completion is written out in detail. The research paper covers all of these topics for the purpose of informing and educating others. The underlying principles and objectives of financial accounting and reporting that guide and direct the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in setting Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are collectively referred to as the conceptual framework. Although the conceptual framework is not regulatory by nature, it does act as the basis for the laws and rules that are set. It is in place in order to assist in the creation of consistent standards across the board. It lays out the objectives of financial accounting and reporting so that changes to GAAP will be sure to further those stated objectives. The seven Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts (SFACs) issued by the FASB comprise the conceptual framework...
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...C H A P T E R 2 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR FINANCIAL REPORTING LEARNING OBJECTIVES After studying this chapter, you should be able to: •1 •2 •3 •4 Describe the usefulness of a conceptual framework. Describe efforts to construct a conceptual framework. Understand the objective of financial reporting. Identify the qualitative characteristics of accounting information. Define the basic elements of financial statements. •6 •7 Describe the basic assumptions of accounting. Explain the application of the basic principles of accounting. Describe the impact that constraints have on reporting accounting information. •8 •5 What Is It? Everyone agrees that accounting needs a framework—a conceptual framework, so to speak—that will help guide the development of standards. To understand the importance of developing this framework, let’s see how you would respond in the following two situations. SITUATION 1: “Taking a Long Shot . . . ” To supplement donations collected from its general community solicitation, Tri-Cities United Charities holds an Annual Lottery Sweepstakes. In this year’s sweepstakes, United Charities is offering a grand prize of $1,000,000 to a single winning ticket holder. A total of 10,000 tickets have been printed, and United Charities plans to sell all the tickets at a price of $150 each. Since its inception, the Sweepstakes has attracted area-wide interest, and United Charities has always been able to meet its sales target. However, in the...
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...Accounting Horizons Vol. 24, No. 3 2010 pp. 471–485 American Accounting Association DOI: 10.2308/acch.2010.24.3.471 COMMENTARY A Framework for Financial Reporting Standards: Issues and a Suggested Model American Accounting Association’s Financial Accounting Standards Committee (AAA FASC) James A. Ohlson, Stephen Penman, Robert Bloomfield, Theodore E. Christensen, Robert Colson, Karim Jamal, Stephen Moehrle, Gary Previts, Thomas Stober, Shyam Sunder, and Ross L. Watts SYNOPSIS: This paper addresses the issues that confront the FASB and IASB in developing a new conceptual framework document. First, we suggest characteristics that a conceptual framework ought to exhibit. Most of these suggestions are based on our critique of the existing framework and the FASB-IASB work in progress. Second, we present a model framework that exhibits these characteristics. We emphasize up front that this framework is quite explicit. It goes to the heart of what a framework document should do: it places specific restrictions on what constitutes admissible accounting standards. The purpose of our effort is to stimulate broad discussion of alternative approaches to foundational documents and to offer a specific example of such an alternative approach. Keywords: FASB; IASB; conceptual framework; accounting standards; financial reporting. JEL Classifications: M40. In 2008, the American Accounting Association’s Executive Committee asked the Financial Accounting Standards Committee...
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...CHAPTER 2 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK UNDERLYING FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING Show Me the Earnings! The growth of new-economy business on the Internet has led to the development of new measures of performance. When Priceline.com splashed onto the dot-com scene, it touted steady growth in a measure called “unique offers by users” to explain its heady stock price. To draw investors to its stock, Drugstore.com focused on the number of “unique customers” at its website. After all, new businesses call for new performance measures, right? Not necessarily. In fact, these indicators failed to show any consistent relationship between profits and website visits. Eventually, as the graphs below show, the profits never materialized, and stock prices fell. The lesson here: Although the new economy may require some new measures, investors need to be careful not to forget the reliable traditional ones. PRICELINE.COM Net unique offers by users 3.0 million 2.0 1.0 0 I II III IV 1999 I II III IV 2000 DRUGSTORE.COM Unique customers 2.0 million 1.5 1.0 0.5 0 I II III IV 1999 I II III IV 2000 Stock price $120 a share 80 40 0 I II III IV 1999 I II III IV 2000 2000-IV close $2.13 Stock price $40 a share 30 20 10 0 I II III IV 1999 I II III IV 2000 2000-IV close $1.03 Source: Story and graphs adapted from Gretchen Morgenson, “How Did They Value Stocks? Count the Absurd Ways,” New York Times (March 18, 2001), section 3, p. 1. 34 Copyright ©2008 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Preview of Chapter 2 ...
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...| | | | | | |[pic] | | | | | |UCD School of Business | | | | | |Accountancy Subject Area ...
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...AC2101 – Accounting Recognition and Measurement Agenda for Seminar 1 A. Course introduction 1. Contents overview Seminars 1 to 3 Conceptual Issues Underlying Accounting Recognition and Measurement presented by 2. Assessment components & expectations 3. Administrative matters B. Conceptual overview 1. Purpose of accounting & its role in contracting 2. Concepts of recognition, measurement & disclosure in accounting Low Kin Yew Associate Professor Nanyang Business School Semester 1 2012-13 2 Course Contents Overview Contents 1 Fundamental concepts & issues in accounting Assets: a. Leases b.Investment property c. Financial assets Liabilities: a. Financial liabilities b. Deferred tax liabilities Seminar # 1, 2 & 3 3, 4 & 5 7 8, 9 & 10 Course Contents Overview Contents 4 Equity Revenue a. Revenue recognition principles & criteria b. Customer loyalty programs c. Construction vs. real estate development Expenses a. Expense recognition principles b. Share-based payments transactions & employee stock options c. Employee benefits Seminar # 16 2 5 17 18 19 & 20 3 11 & 12 13, 14 & 15 6 21 21, 22 & 23 23 3 4 Assessment Components Components 1 2 3 4 Seminar participation Group project presentation Term quiz Final exam Total Weighs 15 15 20 50 100 Individual Group (contents: 50%) & individual (presentation 50%) Individual Individual Basis Seminar Participation: Expectations (Project Discovery) Pedagogy • Students take active responsibility...
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...ACCOUNTING THEORY AND PRACTICE (FAR 600) Teaching and Learning Arrangements (SEMESTER: JAN 2007 – APRIL 2007) COURSE CODE : FAR 600 PROGRAM : BACHELOR OF ACCOUNTING (HONS) CREDIT HOURS : 4 CONTACT HOURS : 4 STATUS : CORE SYNOPSIS This financial accounting course exposes students to accounting theory, corporate accounting policies and financial reporting practices. The importance of history is introduced through a brief discussion on accounting history from both experiences of both western and Muslim Civilization. In understanding the theoretical framework of accounting, the various perspectives on financial accounting theory are examined with particular emphasis on their rationale and implications on accounting practice. General concepts of theory formulation are discussed and types of accounting perspectives and research are also introduced in this course. Corporate Accounting Policies are explained by the development of the Conceptual Framework and the Importance of a Regulatory Environment. The Standard Setting process in Malaysia is discussed. An analytical approach of the accounting standards is adopted by examining the recognition, measurement, disclosure and presentation of accounting information is discussed. Significant emphasis is placed on Asset Measurement, Nature of Liabilities, Types of Equity, Recognition of Revenue and Income Finally contemporary accounting practices and...
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...CHAPTER 1 ENVIRONMENT AND THEORETICAL STRUCTURE OF FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING Overview The primary function of financial accounting is to provide useful financial information to users external to the business enterprise. The focus of financial accounting is on the information needs of investors and creditors. These users make critical resource allocation decisions that affect the nation’s economy. The primary means of conveying financial information to investors, creditors, and other external users is through financial statements and related notes. In this chapter you explore important topics such as the FASB’s conceptual framework that serve as a foundation for a more detailed study of financial statements, the way the elements of these statements are measured, and the concepts underlying these measurements and related disclosures. Learning Objectives LO1–1 Describe the function and primary focus of financial accounting. LO1–2 Explain the difference between cash and accrual accounting. LO1–3 Define generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and discuss the historical development of accounting standards, including convergence between U.S. and international standards. LO1–4 Explain why the establishment of accounting standards is characterized as a political process. LO1–5 Explain factors that encourage high-quality financial reporting. LO1–6 Explain the purpose of the conceptual framework. LO1–7 Identify the objective and qualitative characteristics...
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...Accounting theory and conceptual frameworks After studying this chapter you should be able to: & explain what accounting theory is & describe the main attempts at constructing an accounting theory & appraise current developments in the area & describe and discuss the contents of the IASB Framework & appraise the quality and usefulness of the IASB Framework in the context of its self-declared purposes & describe and discuss the parts of IAS 1 relating to accounting concepts and policies & appraise the overall effect of the Framework and comparable parts of IAS 1. Introduction This chapter is about to deal with something that many people believe does not exist – a single generally accepted accounting theory. There is no generally accepted accounting theory at this time even though many attempts have been made to formulate one. According to Eldon S. Hendriksen in Accounting Theory (1977), Theory as it applies to accounting is the coherent set of hypothetical, conceptual and pragmatic principles forming the general frame of reference for a field of inquiry. Thus accounting theory may be defined as logical reasoning in the form of a set of broad principles that 1 Provide a general frame of reference by which accounting practices can be evaluated and 2 Guide the development of new practices and procedures. Accounting theory may also be used to explain existing practices to obtain a better understanding of them. But the most important goal of accounting theory should be to provide...
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...8 Accounting theory and conceptual frameworks After studying this chapter you should be able to: & explain what accounting theory is & describe the main attempts at constructing an accounting theory & appraise current developments in the area & describe and discuss the contents of the IASB Framework & appraise the quality and usefulness of the IASB Framework in the context of its self-declared purposes & describe and discuss the parts of IAS 1 relating to accounting concepts and policies & appraise the overall effect of the Framework and comparable parts of IAS 1. Introduction This chapter is about to deal with something that many people believe does not exist – a single generally accepted accounting theory. There is no generally accepted accounting theory at this time even though many attempts have been made to formulate one. According to Eldon S. Hendriksen in Accounting Theory (1977), Theory as it applies to accounting is the coherent set of hypothetical, conceptual and pragmatic principles forming the general frame of reference for a field of inquiry. Thus accounting theory may be defined as logical reasoning in the form of a set of broad principles that 1 Provide a general frame of reference by which accounting practices can be evaluated and 2 Guide the development of new practices and procedures. Accounting theory may also be used to explain existing practices to obtain a better understanding of them. But the most important goal of accounting theory should be to provide...
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...8 Accounting theory and conceptual frameworks After studying this chapter you should be able to: & explain what accounting theory is & describe the main attempts at constructing an accounting theory & appraise current developments in the area & describe and discuss the contents of the IASB Framework & appraise the quality and usefulness of the IASB Framework in the context of its self-declared purposes & describe and discuss the parts of IAS 1 relating to accounting concepts and policies & appraise the overall effect of the Framework and comparable parts of IAS 1. Introduction This chapter is about to deal with something that many people believe does not exist – a single generally accepted accounting theory. There is no generally accepted accounting theory at this time even though many attempts have been made to formulate one. According to Eldon S. Hendriksen in Accounting Theory (1977), Theory as it applies to accounting is the coherent set of hypothetical, conceptual and pragmatic principles forming the general frame of reference for a field of inquiry. Thus accounting theory may be defined as logical reasoning in the form of a set of broad principles that 1 Provide a general frame of reference by which accounting practices can be evaluated and 2 Guide the development of new practices and procedures. Accounting theory may also be used to explain existing practices to obtain a better understanding of them. But the most important goal of accounting theory should be to provide a...
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