The FASB has been working on a conceptual framework for financial accounting and reporting and has issued seven statements of financial accounting concepts. These SFACs are intended to set forth objectives and fundamentals that will be the basis for developing financial accounting and reporting standards. The objectives identify the goals and purposes of financial reporting. The fundamentals are the underlying concepts of financial accounting--concepts that guide the selection of transactions, events, and circumstances to be accounted for; their recognition and measurement; and the means of summarizing and communicating them to interested parties.

The purpose of SFAC NO. 8, "Qualitative Characteristics of accounting information." is to examine the characteristics that make accounting information useful. the caracteristics or qualities of informaiton discussed in SFAC no. 8 are the ingredients that make information useful and the qualities to be sought when accounting choices are made.

a. identify and discuss the benefits that can be expected to be derived from the FASB's conceptual framework study

b. what are the two fundamental qualities that make accounting information useful?

During the past several years, the FASB has attempted to strengthen the theoretical foundation for the development of accounting principles. Two of the most important results of this attempt are the conceptual framework project and the emerging issues task force. During this same period, the FASB has been criticized for imposing too many standards on the financial reporting process, the standards-overload problem.

c. discuss the goals of and objectives of: the conceptual framework project and the emerging issues task force

d. discuss the standards overload problem