Last week the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published major changes in the registration requirements it imposes on “motor carriers” that use roads and highways to transport materials—including hazardous materials. Over the next two years, these changes will consolidate four separate registration systems into a new web-based Unified Registration System (URS), designed to cover every domestic entity subject to FMCSA authority. Most elements of the new regulations will take effect on October 23, 2015, to allow FMCSA to develop additional URS features and to conduct several related rulemakings, and to allow regulated entities to prepare for the changes in compliance requirements.
Read More
Tags:
Health & Safety,
Environmental risks,
Environmental,
Hazcom,
Transportation
This is the second of a two-part discussion on the August 13, 2013, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) proposal that would result in two new auditing standards. In the first article, I discussed the proposed concept of “critical audit matters” or CAMs. In this article, I discuss the proposed requirements to disclose how long the auditor has been auditing the company and to provide some assurance on “other information” that a registrant must file in an annual filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). I conclude this article with some summary thoughts.
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Business & Legal,
SEC,
Accounting & Tax,
Audit Standards,
Accountants
OSHA Expands Exemption for Digger Derricks Used in Construction Work
On May 29, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule that revises the regulations for cranes and derricks used in construction. These amendments expand the digger-derrick exemption to include all digger derricks used in construction work subject to 29 CFR1926 subpart V, Power Transmission and Distribution. A digger derrick (also called a radial boom derrick) is a specialized type of equipment designed to install utility poles. This revision removes from coverage under 29 CFR 1926 subpart CC certain types of non-pole digger-derrick work described by Edison Electrical Institute. OSHA also made several minor clarifications to the text of the exemption.
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Employer Best Practices,
Health & Safety,
OSHA,
Employee Rights,
Training,
EHS
On August 13, 2013, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) issued a lengthy, 294-page proposal that would create two new auditing standards and amend several existing rules. If finalized, it will likely increase the work load of auditors. Presumably, the PCAOB proposed these rules, not to “help” the pocketbooks of auditors but rather to provide more useful information to investors. Much of this proposal resulted from feedback the PCAOB received on its June 21, 2011, “concept release” on possible changes to the auditor’s reporting model. The PCAOB has now answered my question from a prior blog article, “Where Is the Regulator of Auditors of Public Companies?"
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Business & Legal,
SEC,
Accounting & Tax,
Audit Standards,
Accountants
One small but critically important sub-category of chemical incidents consists of those that can produce mass casualties, usually when a cloud of toxic or superheated gases are spewed out by a fire or explosion. Given America’s fragmented approach to hazardous materials regulation, it’s no surprise that separate regulatory programs have grown up to address these concerns—leading inevitably to overlaps and gaps in coverage.
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Business & Legal,
Health & Safety,
OSHA,
Environmental risks,
Environmental,
EHS,
EPA,
Greenhouse Gas,
Hazcom
On May 14, 2013, the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) issued its final revised “Framework” for internal control reporting. Many accountants and other readers may raise the question, who is COSO and what do they do? Yes, accountants are quite familiar with guidance issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and other standard-setters, but COSO is not a standard-setter. So, this latest version of the COSO Framework arguably is a “sleeper” when it comes to guidance that may affect accountants.
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Business & Legal,
SEC,
Accounting & Tax,
Lease Accounting,
Audit Standards,
Accountants
Actions by the SEC, other federal agencies and the courts continue to change or propose changes to the rules concerning the disclosures that publicly listed companies must make. They are responding to the latest series of U.S. federal laws aimed at improving corporate accountability and enhancing growth in a slow economy. Most recently, a court has vacated the SEC rule on disclosure of payments by resource extraction issuers, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recommended further disclosures about auditor attestation, as follows:
Read More
Tags:
Corporate Governance,
Business & Legal,
SEC,
Audit Standards
If government provided a unified approach to chemical regulation, then each chemical might be subject to a single set of requirements, which ideally would be tailored to reflect chemical-specific hazards throughout its life cycle. Instead, each chemical is subject to its own loosely connected (some would say haphazard) collection of environmental, health and safety (EH&S) requirements. Some are federal, some are state (or provincial if you’re in Canada), and others are regional and even local. You may need to refer to agencies at all three levels (federal, state and local) to identify your regulators and their requirements – although many organizations only deal with the agency responsible for permitting and inspecting day-to-day activities.
Read More
Tags:
Audit Standards,
Environmental risks,
Environmental,
EHS,
EPA,
Hazcom,
MSDS,
mact
