The Yellow Book Interpreted (Currently Unavailable)

Author: Leita Hart-Fanta

This manual is a guide to the December 2011 Internet Version of the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards. It includes stories, practical information, and warnings about the content of the GAO's audit bible. All chapters are covered in depth and clarified.

Number of Pages: 315

Publication Date: January 2012

Designed For
Auditors and monitors

Topics Covered

• Introduction to the Yellow Book Interpreted
• Ethics
• Types of Yellow Book Audits
• Independence
• Professional Judgment, Competence, and Quality Assurance
• Field Work Standards for Financial Audits
• Reporting Standards for Financial Audits
• Standards for Attestation Engagements
• General Concepts Guiding Performance Audits
• Planning Standards for Performance Audits: Part I-III
• The Final Field Work Standards for Performance Audits
• Reporting Standards for Performance Audits

Learning Objectives

• Differentiate between the Yellow Book and other auditing standards.
• Identify the cases where an engagement requires the use of the Yellow Book
• Recognize the way the Yellow Book is organized
• Recognize auditors' ethical responsibilities in the government environment
• Identify which standards should and must be applied to each type of audit
• Distinguish among the three types of Yellow Book engagements
• Identify how to employ the conceptual framework in evaluating threats to an auditor's independence
• Recognize what professional judgment means per GAO standards
• Determine whether an audit team has met competency standards
• Assess whether an audit team has met the Yellow Book requirements regarding quality control and peer review
• Differentiate between GAO and AICPA standards regarding financial audits
• Classify an audit finding as: an internal control weakness; a violation of contract or grant agreement; fraud; or abuse
• Identify abuse and an auditor's responsibility with regard to abuse in the government environment
• Differentiate AICPA financial audit reporting standards to GAGAS standards
• Identify the triggers of an audit finding
• Differentiate among the elements of a finding
• Conclude whether an attestation engagement can be performed using the described project criteria
• Distinguish among the three types of attestation engagements
• Recognize the requirements regarding internal controls, violations of contracts or grant agreements, fraud, and abuse among the three engagement types
• Identify the steps of planning and conducting a performance audit
• Differentiate between the concepts of materiality and significance
• Identify factors that affect audit risk in a performance audit
• Identify the parameters of an audit project: audit objective, audit scope, and audit methodology
• Distinguish among the types of information that auditors "should" and "may" gather during the planning phase of a performance audit
• Discriminate among management control, internal control, and information technology control terminologies
• Evaluate whether a client behavior classifies as a reportable condition on a performance audit
• Identify criteria during the planning phase of a performance audit
• Determine whether components of an audit project are in place
• Recognize the types of evidence and their relative strengths
• Distinguish between mandatory and optional documentation requirements
• Differentiate among the contents of a performance audit report including audit objective, scope and methodology, and audit results

Level
Intermediate

Instructional Method
Self-Study

NASBA Field of Study
Auditing (Governmental) (14 hours)

Program Prerequisites
More than one year of auditing experience.

Advance Preparation
None