Analysis of Canadian/US GAAP Differences

The AcSB discussed a report analyzing reported Canadian/US GAAP differences in a sample of 2004 financial statements of Canadian public companies.

Disclosure of Non-Consolidated Information

The AcSB commenced consideration of the input received from its User Advisory Council concerning disclosure of non-consolidated financial information about legal entities within a consolidated group.

Fair Value Measurement

The AcSB discussed aspects of the US Financial Accounting Standards Board's (FASB) proposed final Fair Value Measurement standard relative to the tentative AcSB staff conclusions proposed in the AcSB’s work on Measurement Bases for Financial Reporting — Measurement on Initial Recognition, in order to provide input to related International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) deliberations. No decisions were made.
 
Handbook Improvements

The AcSB reviewed the status of its Accounting Standards Improvements Project in light of events since the original project was approved.  The AcSB decided to:

complete improvements for: – Section 1506, Accounting Changes; and – Section 3500, Earning per Share; consider any modifications to US or IASB standards relating to: – Section 1751, Interim Financial Statements; and – Section 3475, Disposal of Long-Lived Assets and Discontinued Operations; consider improvements to Section 1600, Consolidations, in conjunction with further work on its Business Combinations project; and discontinue amendments to Section 3820, Subsequent Events.  The AcSB decided that changes to Section 3820 were not warranted at this time, particularly taking into consideration developments in the civil liability regime and other reporting requirements affecting public companies, and given constituents’ views. Strategic Planning

The AcSB continued its discussion of issues arising from its March 2005 Invitation to Comment, “Accounting Standards in Canada: Future Directions — Draft Strategic Plan.”  The AcSB considered several implementation issues associated with the proposed plan and agreed to some minor modifications to individual strategies.  The AcSB expects to finalize its Strategic Plan in early 2006.

International Activities

The AcSB received reports on recent meetings of the IASB and FASB (see www.iasb.org.uk and www.fasb.org, respectively). In particular, the AcSB noted:

the issue by the IASB of two Discussion Papers. “Measurement Objectives — Measurement on Initial Recognition,” prepared by AcSB staff, is issued for comment by May 19, 2006. “Management Commentary” is issued for comment by April 28, 2006. that AcSB staff have issued a comparison of IFRS with Canadian GAAP, available to subscribers to the electronic version of the CICA Handbook. that the FASB has added a comprehensive project to its agenda to reconsider the accounting for pensions and other post-retirement benefits.