Key Takeaways from the 2016 AICPA Not-for-Profit Industry Conference: A Practice Leader's Perspective

By Mike Burns, CPA

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) held its annual Not-for-Profit Industry Conference on June 17-29, 2016. With more than 2,000 participants from around the country, this conference is widely viewed as the most important educational conference of the year for professionals who help address the accounting, audit, tax and operational issues facing not-for-profit organizations.

As in past years, CBIZ and MHM sponsored this industry-leading event and many of our key leaders from across the country that serve the not-for-profit & education sector were in attendance. We also had the honor of speaking at the conference on Uniform Grant Guidance (presented by Michelle Spriggs) and the importance benchmarking plays in managing your not-for-profit (presented by Mike Burns).

While there was broad reaching coverage of many technical and operational issues impacting not-for-profits, two hot topics really bubbled to the surface: Recently approved accounting standards and accounting standards in the pipeline.

These topics were of particular importance this year as three sets of new accounting standards will likely impact every organization to some degree. These include the new revenue recognition standard, which was approved in 2014, the new lease accounting standard, approved in early 2016, and the new NFP reporting model, which is expected to be issued in its final form shortly. We recommend that organizations take particular care to understand these new accounting standards as in many cases they could have a more than inconsequential effect on accounting and disclosures covering these items. Detailed information on these standards and the latest update on the NFP reporting model are available by visiting the FASB website.

Conduct a Thorough Review

With the nature and level of changes in the offing, organizations should have systems in place to stay abreast of external developments so they can properly prepare and plan for the impact over time. A good place to start would be to review the AICPA conference agenda to determine whether your organization is adequately up to date on the topics and matters that may impact your organization. The agenda can be found by visiting the AICPA website. An advisor knowledgeable in the trends and emerging issues facing the not-for-profit sector may be able to help your organization analyze the impact of some of these issues on your organization, including when some of the developments are expected to take effect. You may also want to consider whether your organization needs some additional training on particular topics so you are ready to deal with the changes that are ahead.

Your CBIZ and MHM team is ready to assist you with these matters and issues. We will be publishing detailed articles in our newsletter regarding these topics over the coming months, conducting free, informational webinars and hosting local seminars in many of the markets that we serve. Contact us for more information on how your organization can be prepared for the trends that will impact your organization.

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Mike Burns is a Shareholder of Mayer Hoffman McCann P.C. (MHM) and is the National Not-for-Profit Practice Leader for CBIZ & MHM. He can be reached at 617.761.0584 or mburns@cbiz.com.

Published on July 27, 2016