The Government/Not-for-Profit CPA Report
Summary Page
Vol. 2005, No. 1
The Not-for-Profit Specialist
Investment Gains and Losses: Traps for the Unwary
For the past decade, FASB Statement 124 has required nonprofit organizations to report
all debt investments and equity investments that have a readily determinable fair market
value in the organization’s statement of financial position. Reed Risteen, an audit partner
in the nonprofit services group of Blum Shapiro, reports how this guidance -- along with
the Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act -- provides a roadmap for nonprofit
organizations, and their auditors, in avoiding traps for the unwary.
Even More Scrutiny for Charities?
As Congress moves closer to cracking down on abuses at charities, it is widely expected
that many of the legislative proposals will come from the blue-ribbon Panel on the
Nonprofit Sector, which recently issued its interim report. Prof. Michael Tucker analyzes
the panel's proposed changes that are designed to improve governing procedures and
financial disclosure.
The Government Specialist
Continuity Management: What You Need to Know
Research indicates that organizations face crises on an average of every four to five
years. These disasters can range from sabotage and terrorist activities to power grid and
telephone failure, from computer viruses and corrupted data to asbestos and "sick"
buildings. As a result, more enterprises than ever are asking Jim Brooks, senior vice
president of Control Risks Group: "Are we effectively implementing -- and auditing -our continuity management program?"
Dealing with Restricted Net Assets: What You Need to Do
GASB's financial reporting model requires that the limitations on the use of net assets,
imposed by enabling legislation, be reported as “restricted net assets.” But some
governments, and their financial advisers, have had difficulty interpreting the requirement
that those restrictions be “legally enforceable.” In this segment, we explain how new
GASB Statement 46 will help determine when net assets have been restricted to a
particular use.