The movement to convergence U.S. and international accounting rules is so important, the Financial Accounting Standards Board is devoting some 70 percent of its time to convergence-related projects, says board member Marc Siegel.

The FASB is meeting monthly with the International Accounting Standards Board to focus heavy attention on about eight major changes to U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Standards, said Siegel in a podcast posted to the FASB’s website. Between monthly in-person meetings, the boards also are conducting live videoconferences in the hopes of getting the new standards finalized in 2011, said Siegel.

The two boards have turned up the heat on the convergence effort at the urging of the Securities and Exchange Commission to facilitate an eventual U.S. movement to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards, which are written by the IASB. Earlier this year, with all eyes in global capital markets fixed on the SEC for its determination of when and how U.S. markets will move into the IFRS rulebook, the SEC shifted attention to the convergence effort, looking for the elimination of major difference between U.S. GAAP and IFRS as a preliminary step.

Siegel said the two boards are making significant progress, especially on some of the trickiest issues now that they’re meeting face to face more frequently. “When we’re in person find that we understand the basis for the reasons we’re coming to different conclusions,” he said. Progress is greatest “when we’re in the same room and we’re able to hash those things out.”

The two boards expect to issue proposals “in the very near term” regarding financial statement presentation, leases, consolidations and possible derecognition, said Siegel. “On some of the projects (the FASB and IASB) are very much aligned,” he said. “On some of the projects we are less aligned, at least with our tentative decisions to date.”

FASB spokesman Neal McGarity said the Siegel podcast is the first of what will become a series of occasional podcasts to help update preparers and users of financial statements on important accounting issues. Siegel also addressed new disclosures companies are providing regarding fair value measurements and a recent deferral in consolidation requirements for investment companies.