A regulatory body is a government agency that is "formed or mandated under the terms of a legislative act (statute) to ensure compliance with the provisions of the act, and in carrying out its purpose" ("Regulatory Agency"). Accounting regulatory bodies exercise their power in terms of accounting practices for corporate and commercial enterprises ("Regulatory Agency"). Four of the major past and present accounting regulatory bodies include the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), and the Public Oversight Board (POB) ("A Glossary of Terms"). This paper will briefly describe each regulatory body and how compliance with its rules is achieved.
The PCAOB, or "Peekaboo," as it is sometimes called, is "a private-sector, non-profit corporation created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act" of 2002 that oversees the auditors of public companies ("A Glossary of Terms"). The PCAOB strives to protect investors' interests and raise public interest in "informative, fair, and independent audit reports" ("A Glossary of Terms"). Compliance with PCAOB includes adhering to its ethics code, rules, and auditing standards ("Rules of the Board").
The FASB is a "private sector body that sets accounting standards (referred to as generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the ground rules for the preparation of financial statement[s] for non-governmental entities in the United States" as required by the SEC with respect to publicly held companies ("A Glossary of Terms"). Companies are required to follow FASB rules, which are published in "pronouncements," and the FASB deliberates both broad and specific issues ("A Glossary of Terms"). Compliance with FASB involves strict adherence to GAAP accounting methods.
The IASB is an international accounting standards body that started out as a non-for-profit corporat...