The American Institute of CPAs is gearing up to establish a new business reporting model comprising online, real-time disclosures and performance-based measurements.

The Houston Chronicle has uncovered a home video of a farewell roast for departing Enron former president Rich Kinder in which many Enron executives, all of whom are under federal investigation now, say their heartfelt and sometimes humorous farewells to Mr. Kinder.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) has published two new exposure drafts (EDs) for comment. One relates to "Accounting and Financial Reporting for Impairment of Capital Assets and for Insurance Recoveries." The other is entitled "Budgetary Comparison Schedules -- Perspective Differences."The first ED would require governments to report the effects of capital asset impairment in their financial statements when they occur.

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants has submitted comments to the SEC regarding the implementation of three areas of the Sarbanes-Oxley bill, including internal control, the makeup of audit committees and a code of ethics.In a press release issued this week, the AICPA states its case in the three areas:Internal Control ReportingThe AICPA has long supported a requirement that management of a public company report on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting.

"Whistleblowing: A New Perspective On An Old Issue" covers all the hot topics making headlines today by delineating what the courts are saying about whistleblowing cases, how federal and state regulations (like the new Sarbanes-Oxley Act) affect the way you deal with whistleblowing, and what practical steps you can take to make sure your company doesn't get hit with a whistleblowing dilemma.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced the results of three test cases involving illegal selective disclosures of material information to analysts or institutional investors. Under Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD), which took effect two years ago, companies are required to release information to the public at the same time they provide it to securities professionals.Highlights of the three test cases and their resolution:Siebel Systems paid a $250,000 fine.

A former assistant treasurer at Peregrine, has admitted that she and other company officials conspired to disguise the company's financial condition. Earlier this year, Peregrine filed for bankruptcy protection and filed a lawsuit against Arthur Andersen, seeking to blame Andersen for failing to detect the fraud.According to press accounts, the former treasury official said she and others, including the chief financial officer, conspired to sell false and uncollectible receivables to Wells Fargo HSBC Trade Bank to improve the company's financial results.

In these weeks leading up to the one-year anniversary of Enron's declaration of bankruptcy, attention is focused once again on what happened and what went wrong at the energy giant. But while last year's Enron collapse grabbed all the headlines, the reality is that thousands of civil cases are reported annually where the issue at hand is alleged retirement and health plan fraud.Speaking at a conference earlier this month, Ann L.

Double booking of revenues, counting revenues targeted to other organizations, and booking volunteer’s time as contribution revenues are all accounting practices that are now being questioned at the United Way, according to a report by the New York Times.Brian A. Gallagher, president of the United Way of America, indicated that while some of the practices in question conform to GAAP, the post-Enron scrutiny of accounting practices require that the organization now respond to the issues in question.Many of the practices result in inflated revenues for the local member organizations.