The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is the independent body that is responsible for the creation of GAAP. The board is the standard setting body in charge of standards for nongovernmental companies operating in the United States. Since 2002, the IASB and FASB have been working together to improve and converge U.S. GAAP and IFRS. The United States is not the only country working toward convergence, as of 2009, Japan and China were both working toward convergence of IFRS as well as their accounting standards. In February 2010 the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) issued statements of support of the convergence in IFRS and U.S. GAAP.
The FASB intends to analyze each of the differences within the scope and either (1) amend applicable U.S. GAAP literature to reduce or eliminate the difference or (2) communicate to the IASB the Board’s rationale for electing not to change U.S. GAAP. Concurrently, the IASB will review IFRS and make similar determinations of whether to amend applicable IFRS or communicate its rationale to the FASB for electing not to change the IASB’s GAAP (Schroeder, Clark, & Cathey, 2011). A couple of the issues the FASB and IFRS are currently working on include
References: What have IASB and FASB convergence efforts achieved?. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Issues/2013/Feb/20126984.htm Schroeder, R. G., Clark, M. W., & Cathey, J. M. (2011). Financial Accounting Theory and Analysis (10th ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. FASB Project Update. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://1. http://www.fasb.org/jsp/FASB/FASBContent_C/ProjectUpdatePage&cid=900000011123 Convergence between IFRSs and US GAAP. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ifrs.org/Use- around-the-world/Global%20convergence/Convergence-with-US GAAP/Pages/Convergence-with-US-GAAP.aspx