Question & Answer

Differentiate between the direct method and the indirect method by discussing each method.

Why is it necessary to convert accrual-based net income to a cash basis when preparing a statement of cash flows?

Unlike the other major financial statements, the statement of cash flows is not prepared from the adjusted trial balance. From what sources does the information to prepare this statement come, and what information does each source provide?

Identify the following items as (1) operating, (2) investing, or (3) financing activities: purchase of land, payment of dividends, cash sales, and purchase of treasury stock.

Identify and explain the major steps involved in preparing the statement of cash flows.

What are the major sources of cash (inflows) in a statement of cash flows? What are the major uses (outflows) of cash?

Differentiate between investing activities, financing activities, and operating activities.

Of what use is the statement of cash flows?

What is the purpose of the statement of cash flows? What information does it provide?

As part of the year-end accounting process and review of operating policies, Cullen Co. is considering a change in the accounting for its equipment from the straight-line method to an accelerated method. Your supervisor wonders how the company will report this change in accounting. It has been a few years since he took intermediate accounting, and he cannot remember whether this change would be treated in a retrospective or prospective manner. Your supervisor wants you to research the authoritative guidance on a change in accounting policy related to depreciation methods.

Instructions

Access the IFRS authoritative literature at the IASB website (http://eifrs.iasb.org/). (Click on the IFRS tab and then register for free eIFRS access if necessary.) When you have accessed the documents, you can use the search tool in your Internet browser to respond to the following questions. (Provide paragraph citations.)

(a) What are the accounting and reporting guidelines for a change in accounting policy related to depreciation methods?

(b) What are the conditions that justify a change in depreciation method, as contemplated by Cullen Co.?

Joblonsky Inc. has recently hired a new independent auditor, Karen Ogleby, who says she wants “to get everything straightened out.” Consequently, she has proposed the following accounting changes in connection with Joblonsky Inc.’s 2014 financial statements.

1. At December 31, 2013, the client had a receivable of $820,000 from Hendricks Inc. on its statement of financial position. Hendricks Inc. has gone bankrupt, and no recovery is expected. The client proposes to write off the receivable as a prior period item.

2. The client proposes the following changes in depreciation policies.

(a) For office furniture and fixtures, it proposes to change from a 10-year useful life to an 8-year life. If this change had been made in prior years, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $250,000 less. The effect of the change on 2014 income alone is a reduction of $60,000.

(b) For its new equipment in the leasing division, the client proposes to adopt the sum-of-the-years’- digits depreciation method. The client had never used SYD before. The first year the client operated a leasing division was 2014. If straight-line depreciation were used, 2014 income would be $110,000 greater.

3. In preparing its 2013 statements, one of the client’s bookkeepers overstated ending inventory by $235,000 because of a mathematical error. The client proposes to treat this item as a prior period adjustment.

4. In the past, the client has spread preproduction costs in its furniture division over 5 years. Because its latest furniture is of the “fad” type, it appears that the largest volume of sales will occur during the first 2 years after introduction. Consequently, the client proposes to amortize preproduction costs on a per-unit basis, which will result in expensing most of such costs during the first 2 years after the furniture’s introduction. If the new accounting method had been used prior to 2014, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $375,000 less.

5. For the nursery division, the client proposes to switch from FIFO to average-cost inventories because it believes that average-cost will provide a better income measure. The effect of making this change on 2014 earnings will be an increase of $320,000. The client says that the effect of the change on December 31, 2013, retained earnings cannot be determined.

6. To achieve an appropriate recognition of revenues and expenses in its building construction division, the client proposes to switch from the cost-recovery method of accounting to the percentageof- completion method. Had the percentage-of-completion method been employed in all prior years, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $1,075,000 greater.

Instructions

(a) For each of the changes described above, decide whether:

(1) The change involves an accounting policy, accounting estimate, or correction of an error.

(2) Restatement of opening retained earnings is required.

(b) What would be the proper adjustment to the December 31, 2013, retained earnings?

Discuss how a change in accounting policy is handled when it is impracticable to determine previous amounts.

What is the indirect effect of a change in accounting policy? Briefly describe the approach to reporting the indirect effects of a change in accounting policy under IFRS.

How might differences in presentation of comparative data under GAAP and IFRS affect adoption of IFRS by U.S. companies?

Briefly describe some of the similarities and differences between GAAP and IFRS with respect to reporting accounting changes.

Where can authoritative IFRS related to accounting changes be found?

As part of the year-end accounting process and review of operating policies, Cullen Co. is considering a change in the accounting for its equipment from the straight-line method to an accelerated method. Your supervisor wonders how the company will report this change in principle. He read in a newspaper article that the FASB has issued a standard in this area and has changed GAAP for a “change in estimate that is effected by a change in accounting principle.” (Thus, the accounting may be different from what he learned in intermediate accounting.) Your supervisor wants you to research the authoritative guidance on a change in accounting principle related to depreciation methods.

Instructions

If your school has a subscription to the FASB Codification, go to http://aaahq.org/ascLogin.cfm to log in and prepare responses to the following. Provide Codification references for your responses.

(a) What are the accounting and reporting guidelines for a change in accounting principle related to depreciation methods?

(b) What are the conditions that justify a change in depreciation method, as contemplated by Cullen Co.?

(c) What guidance does the SEC provide concerning the impact that recently issued accounting standards will have on the financial statements in a future period?

The financial statements of P&G are presented in Appendix 5B. The company’s complete annual report, including the notes to the financial statements, can be accessed at the book’s companion website, www.

wiley.com/college/kieso.

Instructions

Refer to P&G’s financial statements and the accompanying notes to answer the following questions.

(a) Were there changes in accounting principles reported by P&G during the three years covered by its income statements (2009–2011)? If so, describe the nature of the change and the year of change.

(b) What types of estimates did P&G discuss in 2011?

Mike Crane is an audit senior of a large public accounting firm who has just been assigned to the Frost Corporation’s annual audit engagement. Frost has been a client of Crane’s firm for many years. Frost is a fast-growing business in the commercial construction industry. In reviewing the fixed asset ledger, Crane discovered a series of unusual accounting changes, in which the useful lives of assets, depreciated using the straight-line method, were substantially lowered near the midpoint of the original estimate. For example, the useful life of one dump truck was changed from 10 to 6 years during its fifth year of service. Upon further investigation, Mike was told by Kevin James, Frost’s accounting manager, “I don’t really  your problem. After all, it’s perfectly legal to change an accounting estimate. Besides, our CEO likes to see big earnings!”

Instructions

Answer the following questions.

(a) What are the ethical issues concerning Frost’s practice of changing the useful lives of fixed assets?

(b) Who could be harmed by Frost’s unusual accounting changes?

(c) What should Crane do in this situation?

As a certified public accountant, you have been contacted by Joe Davison, CEO of Sports-Pro Athletics, Inc., a manufacturer of a variety of athletic equipment. He has asked you how to account for the following changes.

1. Sports-Pro appropriately changed its depreciation method for its machinery from the doubledeclining- balance method to the units-of-production method effective January 1, 2014.

2. Effective January 1, 2014, Sports-Pro appropriately changed the salvage values used in computing depreciation for its office equipment.

3. On December 31, 2014, Sports-Pro appropriately changed the specific subsidiaries constituting the group of companies for which consolidated financial statements are presented.

Instructions

Write a 1–1.5 page letter to Joe Davison explaining how each of the above changes should be presented in the December 31, 2014, financial statements.

Katherine Irving, controller of Lotan Corp., is aware of a pronouncement on accounting changes. After reading the pronouncement, she is confused about what action should be taken on the following items related to Lotan Corp. for the year 2014.

1. In 2014, Lotan decided to change its policy on accounting for certain marketing costs. Previously, the company had chosen to defer and amortize all marketing costs over at least 5 years because

Lotan believed that a return on these expenditures did not occur immediately. Recently, however, the time differential has considerably shortened, and Lotan is now expensing the marketing costs as incurred.

2. In 2014, the company examined its entire policy relating to the depreciation of plant equipment. Plant equipment had normally been depreciated over a 15-year period, but recent experience has indicated that the company was incorrect in its estimates and that the assets should be depreciated over a 20-year period.

3. One division of Lotan Corp., Hawthorne Co., has consistently shown an increasing net income from period to period. On closer examination of its operating statement, it is noted that bad debt expense and inventory obsolescence charges are much lower than in other divisions. In discussing this with the controller of this division, it has been learned that the controller has increased his net income each period by knowingly making low estimates related to the write-off of receivables and inventory.

4. In 2014, the company purchased new machinery that should increase production dramatically. The company has decided to depreciate this machinery on an accelerated basis, even though other machinery is depreciated on a straight-line basis.

5. All equipment sold by Lotan is subject to a 3-year warranty. It has been estimated that the expense ultimately to be incurred on these machines is 1% of sales. In 2014, because of a production breakthrough, it is now estimated that 1/2 of 1% of sales is sufficient. In 2012 and 2013, warranty expense vwas computed as $64,000 and $70,000, respectively. The company now believes that these warranty costs should be reduced by 50%.

6. In 2014, the company decided to change its method of inventory pricing from average-cost to the FIFO method. The effect of this change on prior years is to increase 2012 income by $65,000 and increase 2013 income by $20,000.

Instructions

Katherine Irving has come to you, as her CPA, for advice about the situations above. Prepare a report, indicating the appropriate accounting treatment that should be given for each of these situations.

The following are three independent, unrelated sets of facts relating to accounting changes.

Situation 1: Sanford Company is in the process of having its first audit. The company has used the cash basis of accounting for revenue recognition. Sanford president, B. J. Jimenez, is willing to change to the accrual method of revenue recognition.

Situation 2: Hopkins Co. decides in January 2015 to change from FIFO to weighted-average pricing for its inventories.

Situation 3: Marshall Co. determined that the depreciable lives of its fixed assets are too long at present to fairly match the cost of the fixed assets with the revenue produced. The company decided at the beginning of the current year to reduce the depreciable lives of all of its existing fixed assets by 5 years.

Instructions

For each of the situations described, provide the information indicated below.

(a) Type of accounting change.

(b) Manner of reporting the change under current generally accepted accounting principles, including a discussion where applicable of how amounts are computed.

(c) Effect of the change on the balance sheet and income statement.

Various types of accounting changes can affect the financial statements of a business enterprise differently. Assume that the following list describes changes that have a material effect on the financial statements for the current year of your business enterprise.

1. A change from the completed-contract method to the percentage-of-completion method of accounting for long-term construction-type contracts.

2. A change in the estimated useful life of previously recorded fixed assets as a result of newly acquired information.

3. A change from deferring and amortizing preproduction costs to recording such costs as an expense when incurred because future benefits of the costs have become doubtful. The new accounting method was adopted in recognition of the change in estimated future benefits.

4. A change from including the employer share of FICA taxes with payroll tax expenses to including it with “Retirement benefits” on the income statement.

5. Correction of a mathematical error in inventory pricing made in a prior period.

6. A change from presentation of statements of individual companies to presentation of consolidated statements.

7. A change in the method of accounting for leases for tax purposes to conform with the financial accounting method. As a result, both deferred and current taxes payable changed substantially.

8. A change from the FIFO method of inventory pricing to the LIFO method of inventory pricing.

Instructions

Identify the type of change that is described in each item above and indicate whether the prior year’s financial statements should be recast when presented in comparative form with the current year’s financial statements.

Mathys Inc. has recently hired a new independent auditor, Karen Ogleby, who says she wants “to get everything straightened out.” Consequently, she has proposed the following accounting changes in connection with Mathys Inc.’s 2014 financial statements.

1. At December 31, 2013, the client had a receivable of $820,000 from Hendricks Inc. on its balance sheet. Hendricks Inc. has gone bankrupt, and no recovery is expected. The client proposes to write off the receivable as a prior period item.

2. The client proposes the following changes in depreciation policies.

(a) For office furniture and fixtures, it proposes to change from a 10-year useful life to an 8-year life.

If this change had been made in prior years, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $250,000 less. The effect of the change on 2014 income alone is a reduction of $60,000.

(b) For its new equipment in the leasing division, the client proposes to adopt the sum-of-theyears’- digits depreciation method. The client had never used SYD before. The first year the client operated a leasing division was 2014. If straight-line depreciation were used, 2014 income would be $110,000 greater.

3. In preparing its 2013 statements, one of the client’s bookkeepers overstated ending inventory by $235,000 because of a mathematical error. The client proposes to treat this item as a prior period adjustment.

4. In the past, the client has spread preproduction costs in its furniture division over 5 years. Because its latest furniture is of the “fad” type, it appears that the largest volume of sales will occur during the first 2 years after introduction. Consequently, the client proposes to amortize preproduction costs on a per-unit basis, which will result in expensing most of such costs during the first 2 years after the furniture’s introduction. If the new accounting method had been used prior to 2014, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $375,000 less.

5. For the nursery division, the client proposes to switch from FIFO to LIFO inventories because it believes that LIFO will provide a better matching of current costs with revenues. The effect of making this change on 2014 earnings will be an increase of $320,000. The client says that the effect of the change on December 31, 2013, retained earnings cannot be determined.

6. To achieve an appropriate recognition of revenues and expenses in its building construction division, the client proposes to switch from the completed-contract method of accounting to the percentage-of-completion method. Had the percentage-of-completion method been employed in all prior years, retained earnings at December 31, 2013, would have been $1,075,000 greater.

Instructions

(a) For each of the changes described above, decide whether:

(1) The change involves an accounting principle, accounting estimate, or correction of an error.

(2) Restatement of opening retained earnings is required.

(b) What would be the proper adjustment to the December 31, 2013, retained earnings?