2018 Accounting Year In Review

Having recently completed several major long-term projects, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has continued to assist stakeholders with implementing new standards and resolving practice issues. These efforts reflect the Board’s acknowledgement of the recent pace of change in its standard-setting activity. The FASB focused in 2018 on application issues related to the new lease and credit loss standards, resulting in several clarifications to those pronouncements. Currently, preparers and auditors are immersed in efforts to implement these major new standards in the near term. Meanwhile, the FASB has updated its agenda and continues to reduce complexity in U.S. GAAP where possible through its Simplification Initiative.

Our year in review letter summarizes the year’s most significant changes in guidance and what to expect in 2019. We’ve also included a comprehensive list of the effective dates for recently-issued accounting standards.