In December 2010, the FASB added Goodwill Impairment Assessments to its project list in response to concerns of non-public companies about the cost of fair value measurements currently required to evaluate goodwill for potential impairment on an annual basis.  The project relates to step one of the goodwill impairment test, which compares a reporting unit's fair value to its carrying amount.  The project will focus on alternative approaches for non-public companies to assess goodwill for potential impairment, but will also consider implications for public companies.

At is February 9th meeting, the Board directed the staff to further assess, through outreach, the cost-effectiveness of an approach that would use qualitative factors to assess whether it is more-likely-than-not that goodwill is impaired.

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