The Yellow Book Interpreted (Currently Unavailable)

Author: Leita Hart-Fanta

Is it time for you to know the Yellow Book – really know it? Let Leita be your guide in this course, as she converts the GAO’s Government Auditing Standards into plain English and helps you apply its unique standard and guidance to your audit. This text covers the latest on independence, quality control, and audit planning. All three types of engagements - financial, attestation, and performance - are covered. Whether you are an internal auditor, government monitor, or external auditor, the Yellow Book applies to you.

Number of Pages: 303

Publication Date: February 2014

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
• Assess whether an engagement requires the use of the Yellow Book
• Identify the way the Yellow Book is organized
• Classify auditors' ethical responsibilities in the government environment
• Determine which standards should and must be applied to each type of audit
• Distinguish among the three types of Yellow Book engagements
• Employ the conceptual framework in evaluating threats to an auditor's independence
• Describe professional judgment per GAO standards
• Determine whether an audit team has met competency standards
• Determine 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
• Define abuse and an auditor's responsibility with regard to abuse in the government environment
• Compare AICPA financial audit reporting standards to GAGAS standards
• Identify the triggers of an audit finding
• Differentiate among the elements of a finding
• Determine whether an attestation engagement can be performed using the described project criteria
• Distinguish among the three types of attestation engagements
• Compare 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 risk in a performance audit
• Define 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
• Distinguish among the types of evidence and judge their relative strength
• 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
Basic knowledge of Yellow Book

Advance Preparation
None