NASBA proposes changes in CPA requirements [Accounting Today] The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy has proposed a set of revisions to the Uniform Accountancy Act Model Rules for CPAs, including the addition of more course content on data analytics and digital acumen, and the ability to take courses outside a school of business. Other proposals involve recognition of accrediting organizations by state boards of accountancy, and new requirements for internships and independent study.
House passes bill that would relax PPP forgiveness requirements [Journal of Accountancy] The U.S. House approved legislation Thursday making it easier for small businesses and other recipients of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding to qualify for forgiveness of the loans. The House bill, called the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act, H.R. 7010, extends from eight weeks to 24 weeks the time PPP recipients have to spend their funds. The measure also lowers to 60% from 75% the portion of PPP funds borrowers must spend on payroll costs to qualify for full loan forgiveness. That change would allow borrowers to direct more funds to costs such as rent and utilities.
For Chinese Companies — “Double Secret Probation”? [Re:Balance] As the world’s greatest deliberative body – so goes the cliché – the fractious Senate can barely muster bi-partisan agreement on the time of day – so passage of the HFCA by unanimous resolution must elicit skepticism about whether there are adults minding the playroom.
Small Business Loans Under SEC Scrutiny [Bloomberg Tax] The Securities and Exchange Commission is taking a look at publicly traded companies that received government-backed loans intended for small businesses struggling during the coronavirus pandemic.
How companies are becoming creative with accounting during the COVID-19 pandemic [MarketWatch] The COVID-19 outbreak has brought out some creative accounting at companies, as executives attempt to gauge the impact of the pandemic on their businesses and how they would have performed if the crisis hadn’t all but shut the economy down. Before companies began reporting first-quarter earnings, Twitter users joked that the outbreak would prompt new non-standard metrics that could be summarized as “earnings before COVID-19,” or EBITDAC, and they even created a series of coffee mugs that satirized the concept. Indeed, some companies chose to post earnings metrics that removed the pandemic’s impact. “People will get creative telling their story and our message is to be cautious of the creativity,” said Sandy Peters, the head of global financial reporting policy at the CFA Institute in New York.
PwC buys stake in business school for digital skills DBU [Consultancy.eu] PwC has acquired a near 50 percent stake in DBU Digital Business University of Applied Sciences, a Berlin-based business school dedicated to digital topics.
EY Outlines Its Strategy in Legal and Approach to Servicing Law Departments [American Lawyer] The EY goal in the legal industry is straightforward: The organization aims to be a leader in enterprise legal services to large- and medium-sized corporations.
Amended Lawsuit Alleges Identity Theft Related to Deloitte PUA Leak [Spectrum News 1] Bernadette Nolen just got her unemployment benefits. A day after the deposit, she says she was a victim of identity theft. “I cried Saturday when it happened, Sunday, half of Monday,” says Nolen. More than $2 thousand transferred out of her accounts. And, she says someone tried to take her identity too, using her phone number. “They took that phone number and were able to port my number from my carrier, which is Boost, to Metro, and I was out of a phone as well,” says Nolen. Now she’s joining four others as the faces of a class-action lawsuit against Deloitte Consulting. “I feel like this is how my information got out there. Only because I’ve had this card for years and nothing like this has happened. I put it in to get the money on this card, and now my information is all out there,” says Nolen.
