March 27, 2012 /The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has adopted the 2012 non-governmental U.S. GAAP Financial Reporting Taxonomy, the Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) announced.

The FAF and the FASB are responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the Taxonomy applicable to public issuers registered with the SEC.

The U.S. GAAP Financial Reporting Taxonomy contains updates for accounting standards and other improvements to the official Taxonomy previously in use by SEC issuers.

Questions about using this Taxonomy for creating and submitting eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) tagged interactive data files in compliance with SEC rules should be directed to the SEC. SEC contact details and guidance are available at the SEC’s portal on XBRL.

The U.S. GAAP Financial Reporting Taxonomy is a list of computer-readable tags in XBRL that allows companies to tag precisely the thousands of pieces of financial data that are included in typical long-form financial statements and related footnote disclosures. The tags allow computers to automatically search for, assemble, and process data so it can be readily accessed and analyzed by investors, analysts, journalists, and regulators.

In early 2010, the FAF assumed maintenance responsibilities for the Taxonomy, and, along with the FASB, assembled a team of technical staff dedicated to updating the Taxonomy for changes in U.S. GAAP, identifying best practices in Taxonomy extensions, and implementing technical enhancements. The 2011 Taxonomy currently in use by SEC issuers was developed by the FASB.