Opportunities for assurance services in the 21st century: A progress report of the Special Committee on Assurance Services;

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Opportunities for Assurance Services in the 21st Century: A Progress Report of the Special Committee on Assurance Services
Richard Lea
California State University, Chico, and Member of SCAS BACKGROUND AND FOCUS OF THE PAPER
The Special Committee on Assurance Services (SCAS) was established in 1994 to develop new opportunities for the accounting profession to provide value-added assurance services. The Committee is composed of 14 members: six partners from the Big 6, one partner from a regional firm and two from local firms, a corporate financial executive, a representative from the GAO, two academics, and one communications consultant. In addition, SCAS has an Executive Director and other support staff provided by the AICPA. The Committee is scheduled to complete its deliberations and issue its final report at the end of 1996.
The stimuli leading to the formation of SCAS included the following:1
• Flat revenues earned for accounting and auditing services for the six years 1989 to 1994.
• Loss in market share of decision useful information covered by an audit.
• Ongoing concerns regarding the "tough problems" (for example, detection of fraud and illegal acts, financial distress and business failure, choice of generally accepted accounting principles).
• Dramatic developments in information technology that are leading to profound changes in how decision-makers deal with information (for example, format, content, timing, sources).
• Jenkins Committee findings and recommendations involving a new business reporting model and possible auditor involvement.2
• Increasingly contentious litigation problems.
The charge given to SCAS by the Board of Directors of the AICPA is to:
• Assess the current and future (i.e., 5-10 years out) needs of users of decision- making information and related needs for audit/assurance services.
• Examine the trends shaping the audit/assurance environment.
• Consider the definition of the audit/assurance function and the need for additional concepts.
• Identify opportunities for new or improved assurance services.
• Consider implications for potential changes in independence, professional skills, and professional education.
SCAS's plan for addressing this charge involves three phases containing the following major tasks:
See: Elliott, R. K., 1994, Confronting the Future: Choices for the Attest Function, Accounting Horizons 8 (3): 106-124; Elliott, R. K., 1994, The Future of Audits, The Journal of Accountancy (September): 74-82.
See: Special Committee on Financial Reporting, 1994, Improving Business Reporting - A Customer Focus, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.