6.4.07    Internal controls were recently listed as the number one financial reporting challenge for 2007 by the head of Financial Executives International.

The move comes in the wake of the recent publication of revised guidance concerning audits of internal controls over financial reporting by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

Second on the list was how to account for uncertain income taxes and the interpretation of FASB Statement No. 109. The adoption of XBRL in the wake of the SEC’s campaign to promote interactive financial reports was third on the list.

Number six on the list of 10 was the complexity involved in financial reporting, which has led to a restatement rate of 10 percent, implying that the accounting staff needs subject-matter experts for every accounting area.