Accounting Standards Codification
On 1 July 2009 the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) launched the Accounting Standards Codification as the single source of authoritative non-governmental US GAAP. The codification is effective for interim and annual periods ending after 15 September 2009.
The codification supersedes all existing non-SEC accounting standards (this includes FASB Statements, EITF abstracts and AICPA Statements of Position). Further information is available from our US Accounting Standards page.
The key resource within the Library and Information Service at the ICAEW for AICPA standards and Statements prior to the release of the Accounting Standards Codification was the four volume looseleaf Professional Standards service, which contained:
- Vol.1: US Auditing Standards - AICPA Statements on Auditing Standards and Auditing Interpretations.
- Vol.2: Accounting and review services, ethics, bylaws, international accounting and auditing management advisory services, quality control, tax practice - AICPA Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services, Management Advisory Services, Quality Control Standards and Responsibilities in Tax Practice; IASC Accounting Standards; IFAC Auditing Guidelines.
- Vols.3 and 4: Accounting - AICPA Accounting Research Bulletins, APB Opinions, APB Statements, Accounting Terminology Bulletins, Accounting Interpretations; FASB Interpretations, Technical Bulletins, Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts and Statements of Financial Accounting Standards.
We also have a range of other AICPA publications in the Library collection, including:
- individual standards or Statements
- Audit and Accounting Guides
- Audit and Accounting Manual
- Technical Practice Aids
- Financial Statement Preparation Manual.
Statements prior to the Accounting Standards Codification
Statements of Position (SOP)
Statements of Position are issued by the Accounting Standards Division or the Auditing Standards Division of AICPA. The Library and Information Service holds a copy of the looseleaf AICPA service ‘Technical Aids’ (Volume 2) which collects all current Statements of Position.
From ‘Technical Practice Aids’, Volume 2:
Statements of Position of the Accounting Standards Division present the conclusions of the Accounting Standards Executive Committee, which is the senior technical body of the AICPA authorized to speak for the Institute in the areas of financial accounting and reporting.
Auditing and Attestation Statements of Position are issued to achieve one or more of several objectives: to revise, clarify, or supplement guidance in previously issued Audit and Accounting Guides; to describe and provide implementation guidance for specific types of audit and attestation engagements; or to provide guidance on specialized areas in audit and attestation engagements.
The AICPA website lists Audit, Attest & Quality Control Standards, which include recently issued auditing and attestation interpretations and Statements of Position.
Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS)
Statements on Auditing Standards are issued by the Auditing Standards Board, the senior AICPA committee for auditing, attestation and quality control.
In the Professional Standards volume it is noted that Statements on Auditing Standards are recognized ‘as interpretations of generally accepted auditing standards’ and that members are required to justify any ‘departures from such Statements’.
The AICPA website lists Audit, Attest & Quality Control Standards which include:
Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS)
Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services are issued by the AICPA Accounting and Review Services Committee, the senior technical committee designated to issue pronouncements in connection with the unaudited financial statements or other unaudited financial information of non-public entities.
The AICPA website lists the SSARSs which are currently effective.
In addition, the site also provides Technical Activities and Publications including some letters and appendices issued by the staff of the Accounting and Review Services Committee relating to certain Statement on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS). AICPA Technical Publications including SSARS can be obtained from the AICPA store.
Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAEs)
Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAEs) are issued by senior technical bodies of the AICPA, designated to issue pronouncements on attestation matters.
The introduction to the attestation standards in the Professional Standards volume states that these ‘provide guidance and establish a broad framework for a variety of attest services increasingly demanded of the accounting profession’.
The AICPA website lists Audit, Attest & Quality Control Standards which include:
Other AICPA publications
We have a wide range of AICPA publications in the Library collection, including
AICPA journals
Journal of Accountancy
The Journal of Accountancy is a monthly publication giving the latest news and developments related to the field of accounting relevant to CPAs and other accounting professionals.
The journal was first published in 1905 and the ICAEW Library and Information Service holds a run from 1905 to December 2021, with some gaps. Full details of our holdings can be found on the catalogue.
Most of our copies of the journal are held in an off-site store and advance notice is required if members wish to consult them. Alternatively, we can answer queries from remote users once copies are retrieved from store.
Abstracts of some key articles from the Journal of Accountancy can be found on LibCat, the Library's online catalogue.
The AICPA provides an online edition of the Journal of Accountancy which includes most of the articles in full text but omits some of the content from the printed version due to reasons of copyright/timeliness. The archive allows users to browse or search issues from 1997 to date.
The CPA Letter
The CPA Letter was first published in 1973 and the ICAEW Library holds a collection of issues from 1973 to 1998 with some gaps. It is now published online.
The Tax Adviser
The Tax Adviser is a monthly magazine published by AICPA. The journal is available in full text online to AICPA members who belong to the AICPA Tax Division with an archive of issues back to July 1997. Non-members can access a monthly table of contents for each issue.
The ICAEW Library and Information Service holds some print issues of The Tax Adviser published between 2012 and 2021.
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