The FASB issued on May 1, 2014 Accounting Standards Update 2015-07, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820), Disclosures for Investments in Certain Entities That Calculate Net Asset Value per Share (or Its Equivalent). The amendments in Accounting Standards Update 2015-07 (the Update) remove the requirement to categorize within the fair value hierarchy all investments for which
As expected, the FASB proposed three Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs) aimed at simplifying accounting for employee benefit plans. According to the AICPA Journal of Accountancy, the updates were the result of consensuses of FASB’s Emerging Issues Task Force. The three proposed ASUs for plan accounting were included in one exposure draft: Proposed ASU, Plan Accounting: Defined
On April 14, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor has released a proposed rule that they believe will protect 401(k) and IRA investors by mitigating the effect of conflicts of interest in the retirement investment marketplace. A White House Council of Economic Advisers analysis found that these conflicts of interest result in annual losses of about 1
The Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (“EPCRS”) sets forth a comprehensive system of correction programs for sponsors of retirement plans that are intended to satisfy the requirements of § 401(a), 403(a), 403(b), 408(k), or 408(p) of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), but that have failed to meet those requirements for a period of time. The
The Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) conducted a Voluntary Compliance Follow-Up project to determine if plan sponsors completed the corrections they agreed to in their Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) compliance statements. When you find errors in your plan’s form or operation, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) encourage you to fix them using one of their
Recently, the IRS posted guidance for Plan sponsors on loans and hardship distributions. Even if you use a third party administrator (TPA) to handle participant transactions, you’re still ultimately responsible for the proper administration of your retirement plan. Make sure you’re keeping up with the recordkeeping requirements. Keep documentation for hardship distributions The plan sponsor
In January 2013 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and staff met with members of the AICPA’s Employee Benefit Plan (EBP) Expert Panel and members of the AICPA Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center (EBPAQC). Areas in current GAAP that do not consider the specialized characteristics and challenges of accounting and reporting for employee benefit