The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) has just approved adopting a new constitution that may just open the door for U.S. securities regulators to accept global accounting standards in financial reporting. The IASC, which is comprised of professional accounting organizations from more than 100 countries, is in store for major restructuring.

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt chairs the IASC’s Nominating Committee. That committee has just announced the selection of the initial group of trustees of the restructured IASC.

The IASC’s wants to establish universal accounting standards. The organization has taken many steps to do this including changing its structure to give national standard-setting boards a role in integrating global standards.

Many countries have adopted IASC standards, but the U.S. is not one of them. The latest actions the IASC has taken brings them that much closer to developing accounting standards that the U.S. might accept for financial reporting from foreign issuers.