*Board/Other Public Meeting Dates
The Board meeting minutes are provided for the information and convenience of constituents who want to follow the Board’s deliberations. All of the conclusions reported are tentative and may be changed at future Board meetings. Decisions become final only after a formal written ballot to issue a final Statement, Interpretation, FSP, or Statement 133 Implementation Issue.
Background Information
In 2003, the FASB issued Statement 132(R), which addresses concerns about the need for enhanced disclosures of plan assets, cash flows for benefit payments and contributions, and components of net benefit cost reported in interim periods. Over the past few years, staff research and constituent feedback have indicated that the use of alternative investment instruments and vehicles such as derivatives and hedge funds has increased substantially. Often, these assets are included in the “other” or “debt” categories and there is little to no discussion of risk exposure and usage (that is, leverage versus speculative purposes).
At the August 2007 Board meeting, the Board decided that it could improve the disclosure of the risk exposure of plan assets by creating more robust guidance in Statement 132(R). This guidance would require more detailed disclosure, including further disaggregation of asset categories and improved qualitative discussion about risk exposures in the asset portfolio.
At the November 2007 meeting, the Board determined that Statement 157 disclosures did not apply to the financial statements presented by plan sponsors. The Board decided to accelerate the timing of the enhanced disclosure project and instructed the staff to consider whether any of the disclosures required by Statement 157 should be included in an amended Statement 132(R).
