The Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF) has instituted a due process correspondence procedure to make it easier for stakeholders to raise concerns about possible violations of authoritative standard-setting due process at either the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) or the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), both of which it oversees, as outlined in the FAF bylaws.

Stakeholders can register their concerns by filling out a new due process correspondence form.

The new procedure comes after a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Investor Advisory Committee recommended changes in how FASB operates to make it more responsive to the needs of investors, Accounting Today reported.

If the allegations alleged through this procedure raise meaningful due process issues, the FAF's Oversight Committee will investigate further. If the allegations are found to have merit, the trustees will determine what remedial action is necessary, based on the circumstances.

“We believe adding this new procedure is a natural next step in strengthening the oversight process,” FAF Trustee Timothy Ryan, co-chair of the Oversight Committee, said in a statement.

“Soliciting stakeholder perspectives has always been a vital part of our governance model, just as it is to FASB’s and GASB’s standard-setting processes,” added FAF Trustee David Lillard, co-chair of the Oversight Committee. “We want stakeholders to know they can communicate directly with the Oversight Committee if they have important concerns to share about how faithfully FASB and GASB members are following their due process.”

This procedure is consistent with one of the goals of the FAF’s Strategic Plan, published in November 2022: to "continually review and assess our governance and oversight practices to ensure they align with our mission and vision, reflect best practices, and maintain the confidence of stakeholders in our role to oversee the independent standard-setting process."