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Jen: This is the PKF Texas Entrepreneur’s Playbook. I’m Jen Lemanski, and I’m here with Chip Schweiger, one of our audit Directors and one of the faces of the PKF Texas SEC team. Chip, welcome to the playbook.

Chip: Thanks, Jen. Good to be here.

Jen: So, I know this is the time of year where public companies are getting ready to file their financial statements, their disclosures… What do they need to look at with their Form 10-Ks when they’re getting ready to prepare those?

Chip: Yeah. So, Jen, last year we put out an analysis: comment letter trends from the SEC based on the last three years of comments. We saw some things on there that you would expect: the use of non-GAAP financial measures, comments on the management’s discussion and analysis and comments on fair value measurements, but there are also some new items on the list.

Jen: What kind of new items?

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Continue Reading How Comment Letter Trends from the SEC Impact Public Companies

As part of their Disclosure Effectiveness Initiative, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently proposed interpretive guidance to eliminate some disclosures in Regulation S-K and to amend other requirements to better focus on material information in Item 303, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis.”

United States flag standing in front of a stone capitol building; image used for blog post about SEC proposal to change Regulation S-K

More specifically, the SEC’s proposal would eliminate duplicative disclosures and modernize “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” (known as MD&A) to benefit investors and to simplify compliance for issuers. The proposed amendments are part of a comprehensive evaluation of the SEC’s disclosure requirements intended to improve the SEC’s overall disclosure regime. Specifically, the proposed amendments would eliminate Item 301 of Regulation S-K, “Selected Financial Data,” and Item 302 of Regulation S-K, “Supplementary Financial Information,” as the information is largely duplicative of other requirements.

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Continue Reading SEC Proposes Disclosure Changes to Regulation S-K

On January 30, 2020, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Jay Clayton, released a public statement, “Proposed Amendments to Modernize and Enhance Financial Disclosures; Other Ongoing Disclosure Modernization Initiatives; Impact of the Coronavirus; Environmental and Climate-Related Disclosure.”

frontal view of a stone building with pillars and American flags; image used for blog post about SEC Chairman Public Statement

Clayton’s statement discusses these four topics:

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Continue Reading Public Statement from SEC Chairman: Amendments, Initiatives, more

As part of its Disclosure Effectiveness Initiative of the Division of Corporation Finance, the SEC, in Final Rulemaking Release No. 33-10532, Disclosure Update and Simplification, has adopted amendments to certain of its disclosure requirements that are redundant or outdated or that overlap with, or have been superseded by, other SEC disclosure requirements — disclosures required by United States generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) or those required by International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). The objective of the amendments is to facilitate disclosure of information to investors and to simplify compliance without significantly altering the total mix of information provided.

The amendments are also in response to a provision of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which mandates the SEC to eliminate provisions of Regulation S-K that are no longer deemed necessary.

“It is important to review our regulations to ensure that they evolve along with our capital markets and remain effective and efficient,” said SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. “Today’s amendments are an example of how thoughtful reviews can prompt changes for the benefit of investors, public companies, and our capital markets.”

Additionally, the SEC is referring to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) for potential incorporation into U.S. GAAP certain disclosure requirements that overlap with U.S. GAAP but that call for incremental information. For the time being, pending subsequent action by the FASB, such incremental disclosures are being retained. The SEC has requested, however, that, within the ensuing 18 months, the FASB determine whether (and which of) the referred disclosure items will be added to its standard-setting agenda. The SEC notes that the incorporation of any of its incremental disclosure requirements into U.S. GAAP could potentially affect all entities that prepare financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, including Regulation A issuers, smaller reporting companies, and non-public entities.

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Continue Reading SEC Amends Rules to Eliminate Redundant, Overlapping and Outdated Disclosures