S117 ACT301 Accounting Theory and Contemporary Issues: ASSESSMENT 1 Due date: Length: Value: Week 9, Friday Midnight CST (5 May 2017) As required in Part A and Part B. 1000-2000 words (10% tolerable rate, i.e. maximum word count limit of 2,200 words) 15% of the Total Unit Assessment Task Critical analysis of a given accounting questions and cases. Preparation Study Topics 1-6 through following the study guide and readings. Additional research in accounting literature. Presentation Format and Submission Submit via CDU Learnline in ‘WORD DOC OR PDF’ ONLY. Assessment Font Style and Size: Times New Roman, Size 11 Student number to be indicated on the bottom left hand corner on each page, Times New Roman, Size 9 Page numbering on the bottom right hand corner, Times New Roman, Size 9 Text alignment and line spacing: Left Text Alignment, 1.5 Line Spacing Total Assessment Words: min of 1000, max of 2200 words You are expected to use sources from the academic accounting literature. Examples of these sources are given below. DO NOT reference Wikipedia. Much of the literature that will be useful to you was published in the 1990’s and the first few years of the 21st century. Some suitable academic journals to browse for this purpose include: The Accounting Review Accounting and Business Research International Journal of Accounting Education and Research International Journal of Accounting Asia Pacific Journal of Management The British Accounting Review European Accounting Review Journal of Applied Accounting Research Accounting Research Journal, etc. 2 of 5 S117 ACT301 Accounting Theory and Contemporary Issues: ASSESSMENT 1 Do NOT share files with other students— submission of identical work constitutes plagiarism, and you are liable for charges of misconduct regardless of whether you copied the work or provided the original work to others. Note that plagiarism also includes presenting the ideas of others as if they were your own. It does not only refer to the absence of inverted commas or using the exact words of others. Referencing of sources is expected in Part A and B of this assignment. You have a bonus from doing this correctly since that referencing also provides authoritative support for the statements you make. Be aware that any evidence of plagiarism will be investigated and disciplinary action will be taken. See the sections on plagiarism on CDU Learnline. DO NOT LODGE BY FAX nor EMAIL nor at LECTURER'S OFFICE KEEP A COPY Oral Test or Viva Voce Lecturers may, at their discretion, ask students to verbally present their assignment submissions or rewrite some selected part/s of their answer in a controlled setting. Lecturers may exercise this discretion where they feel that the assignment was not the student’s own work. University Plagiarism policy Plagiarism is the unacknowledged use of material written or produced by others or a rework of your own material. All sources of information and ideas used in assignments must be referenced. This applies whether the information is from a book, journal article, the internet, or a previous essay you wrote or the assignment of a friend. Plagiarism policy is available at: http://www.cdu.edu.au/governance/policies/pol-001.pdf and Student Breach of Academic Integrity Procedures http://www.cdu.edu.au/governance/procedures/pro-092.pdf Extensions and Late Lodgements LATE ASSIGNMENTS WILL GENERALLY NOT BE ACCEPTED UNLESS AN EXTENSION TO THE DUE DATE HAS BEEN GRANTED BY THE HEAD OF SCHOOL. Exceptions will only be made where assignments are late due to special circumstances that are supported by documentary evidence, and may be subject to a penalty of 5% of assignment marks per day. Partially completed assignments will be accepted with appropriate loss of marks for the incomplete portion. Should students foresee potential difficulties with submission of assessment items, they should contact the lecturer immediately the difficulties come to notice, to discuss suitable arrangements etc. for the submission of those assessment times. An Application for Assignment Extension or Special Consideration should be completed and provided to the Head of School, School of Law and Business. This application form, explanation and instructions is available on the ACT301 CDU Learnline course site or direct from http://learnline.cdu.edu.au/units/lb_school_templates/deployed/assignment_extension.docx Please note that it is now Faculty policy that all extension requests must be approved by the Head of School. The lecturer is no longer able to personally approve extension requests. Leaving a request for an extension, special assessment or special consideration until the last moment, based on grounds that students could have reasonably been able to foresee, may result in the application being rejected. Ensure that you maintain suitable backup copies of your assignment during preparation, before completion and after lodgement. Loss of data/assignment due to failure to maintain a suitable backup will not constitute grounds for an extension. 3 of 5 Part A Let us assume that the government has become concerned that existing disclosure regulation tends to fixate on the financial performance of organisation but fails to address other aspects of corporate performance, including failure to provide information about corporate social and environmental impacts as well as about various initiatives and investments an organisation has undertaken to improve its social and environmental performance. As such, the government has decided to introduce legislation that will require business corporations to provide information about the social and environmental impacts of their operations, as well as the social and environmental initiatives undertaken by the corporations. Required: You are required to do the following: (a) Explain from a ‘public interest theory perspective’ the rationale for the Government introducing the legislation and how the government will ultimately assess whether any proposed legislation should actually be introduced. (b) Predict from a ‘capture theory perspective’ the types of constituents that will benefit in the long run from any social and environmental disclosure legislation. (c) Predict from an ‘economic interest group perspective’ whether any potential legislation to be introduced will lead to an increase in the accountability of corporations in relation to their social and environmental performance despite any implications that this increased corporate accountability might have for the financial success of large but heavily polluting organisations. 4 of 5 Part B The website of FASB (www.fasb.org) has a section entitled ‘Facts about FASB’, in which there is information about how accounting standards are developed (as accessed in November 2015). In part, it states: Since 1973, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has been the designated organization in the private sector for establishing standards of financial accounting that govern the preparation of financial reports by nongovernmental entities. Those standards are officially recognized as authoritative by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (Financial Reporting Release No. 1, Section 101, and reaffirmed in its April 2003 Policy Statement) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (Rule 203, Rules of Professional Conduct, as amended May 1973 and May 1979). Such standards are important to the efficient functioning of the economy because decisions about the allocation of resources rely heavily on credible, concise, and understandable financial information. The SEC has statutory authority to establish financial accounting and reporting standards for publicly held companies under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Throughout its history, however, the Commission’s policy has been to rely on the private sector for this function to the extent that the private sector demonstrates ability to fulfil the responsibility in the public interest. Mission The mission of the FASB is to establish and improve standards of financial accounting and reporting that foster financial reporting by nongovernmental entities that provides decision- useful information to investors and other users of financial reports. That mission is accomplished through a comprehensive and independent process that encourages broad participation, objectively considers all stakeholder views, and is subject to oversight by the Financial Accounting Foundation’s Board of Trustees. The FASB accomplishes its mission through a comprehensive and independent process that encourages broad participation, objectively considers all stakeholder views, and is subject to oversight by the Financial Accounting Foundation’s Board of Trustees. The Rules of Procedure describe the FASB’s operating procedures, including the due process activities that are to be open to public participation or observation to provide transparency into the standards-setting process. In particular, the Rules of Procedure describe:  The organization in which the FASB operates  The FASB mission, how the mission is accomplished, and related principles that guide the Board’s standards-setting activities  The operating procedures of the FASB, including the responsibilities of the Chairman, the composition of the FASB technical staff, the role of advisory groups, the Emerging Issues Task Force, and public forums in our due process  Our various forms of communications, including the form and content of Accounting Standards Updates, Exposure Drafts, and Concepts Statements  Protocols for meetings of the FASB and voting requirements  Rules governing public announcements and the kinds of