The Accounting Standards Overload Problem for American Small Businesses

Riding the Iron Horse into the Future of Regulation: The Contribution of Charles Francis Adams Jr.

“…The apparent victory of standardization has triggered reactions and resistances. More flexibility is often hailed as desirable, be it based on the size of the reporting unit (Big GAAP vs. Small GAAP) [40] or by those that prefer a judgment-intensive conceptual accounting to one of bright-line rules. Some fear that the pressures toward standardization will stifle progress toward better approaches [41] or delimiting judgment that prevents the victory of form over substance [28].…”

Financial reporting regulation for small and medium sized private firms : an empirical analysis of compliance, perceptions, costs, and usefulness

“…Their study among 659 CPAs (with a response rate of 35.8%) suggests that in the CPAs views regarding the importance of disclosure requirements, disclosure requirements should be equal for all public compames but should be less for private companies (versus public companies) and for small private companies (versus large private companies) [Knutson and Wichmann, 1985]. A similar study among 273 Australian accountants (response rate 33%) confirms these findings as the results show that legal structure is an important factor in the applicability of accounting requirements and size is an important factor for private companies but not for public compames and sole traders [Hohnes et al, 1991, p. 128].…”