Suddenly, tax experts could become the new rock stars of corporate boards.
First, the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s long-awaited Financial Interpretation No. 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes, finally went into effect on Dec. 15, requiring more certainty and disclosure of a company’s tax exposures. That comes on the heels of a Compliance Week study of 400 companies earlier this year that found one-third of companies reported material weaknesses in their internal controls regarding taxes. And the recent tax shelter abuse scandal suggests that regulators are more closely scrutinizing companies that show tax rates out of whack with industry norms.
