Business Unit Costs Highlighted in Segment Accounting Plan (2)

Companies would have to reveal new expense details about their business units under a US accounting rulemaker plan that represents the biggest change to segment reporting in 25 years.

Public companies would have to break down in their financial statement footnotes a slate of new disclosures about the most significant expenses in their operating segments, the Financial Accounting Standards Board said in a proposal released Thursday.

Operating segments, as defined by the segment reporting standard ASC 280, are units within a company that earn money and incur expenses. Their operating results are regularly reviewed by what accounting rules call a ...