In this project, you will need to consult Chapter 3 of the Yellow Book, which is the set of Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards issued by the US General Accountability Office. That document is here:
Yellow Book Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards.pdfPreview the document
Read the following scenario:
(Please note this is a fictional scenario, and the North Carolina regulations mentioned are not accurate; they are just for the purpose of the assignment.)
Bill Richardson is the mayor of Pantuck, North Carolina, a town 15 miles from Raleigh, the state capital. Pantuck has a Mayor-Council form of government (read about that here: https://www.nlc.org/resource/cities-101-forms-of-local-government/ (Links to an external site.)) Pantuck is a small city of 80,000 residents. The state of North Carolina requires all cities to submit audited financial statements to the State Auditor every year. All municipalities over 50,000 population are expected to have the tax base to afford hiring an independent external auditor; smaller municipalities can contract with the State Auditor’s office to perform the audit.
Loretta Jackson, CPA, who lives in Pantuck is one of three partners in the firm Doyle, Jackson, and Marin, CPAs. Over the past decade, Jackson read several articles about the historically poor quality of governmental financial management. She was persuaded by an opinion piece in the Journal of Accountancy that argued CPAs should advocate for better fiscal management by supporting political candidates who had a strong understanding of financial management and who expressed interest in careful oversight of government spending. In the last election cycle she made campaign contributions to the campaign* of Bill Richardson, a political newcomer whom she believed met those requirements. She also put up a Richardson for Mayor sign in her yard.
After the retirement of Pantuck’s last auditor, the city is looking for a new audit firm. Like all states, North Carolina requires competitive bidding for contracts over a certain amount, and a first-year audit from a new firm is likely to exceed that threshold. For professional services, regulations allow the municipality to consider not just cost, but also qualifications and reputation in accepting the winning bid.
Doyle, Jackson, and Marin, CPAs is located in Raleigh, the state capital. They have clients in various fields, including three municipalities and a school board in the region. Jackson was attending the Pantuck Rotary Club breakfast and heard about the retirement of the city’s auditor from a City Council member giving a speech. At the end of the speech, one of the other members of the Rotary Club introduced Jackson to the guest speaker, who said, “It’s great to meet you! We’re looking for a new auditor, and I hope you will consider submitting a bid. We always prefer to work with people who live in the area if possible,” When Jackson got to her office, she called a meeting with her partners, Doyle and Marin, to discuss whether the firm should submit a bid for the Pantuck audit.
* Campaign laws required that campaign contributions be made directly to campaigns, not to the candidates themselves. If you are unsure about how campaign funds can be spent, read here: https://www.fec.gov/help-candidates-and-committees/making-disbursements/personal-use/ (Links to an external site.)
Required:
Write a report on the independence implications for Loretta Jackson and for Doyle, Jackson, and Marin, CPAs if they want to serve as the external auditors for the city of Pantuck, North Carolina. Your report should address the following questions:
Are there any rules or guidelines in the Yellow Book that would prevent Loretta Jackson from accepting the client?
Are there any rules or guidelines in the Yellow Book that would prevent the firm as a whole from accepting the client?
Are there any threats to independence in this scenario, based on the categories of threats in the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct?
If so, what safeguards might mitigate those threats?
Keep in mind the facts of the case stated above, and do not make assumptions or use your gut reaction. Your answer must address the questions above, citing the Yellow Book or the AICPA code as appropriate. You must use APA style in your writing, and you must use grammatical writing to get an A on the project. If you need help with writing, consider contacting the NSU Write from the Start center (https://www.nova.edu/wcc/index.html (Links to an external site.)), and let them know you need help with grammar. Do not wait until the last minute! If you don’t have an opportunity to work with them, a great idea is to read your report out loud. Students are often their own best editors if they take the time to read their work out loud; it helps catch typos, poorly constructed sentences, and bad grammar pretty well!
