Case 3-18 (45 minutes)
1. Shaving 5% off the estimated direct labor-hours in the predetermined
overhead rate will result in an artificially high overhead rate. The artifi–
cially high predetermined overhead rate is likely to result in overapplied
overhead for the year. The cumulative effect of overapplying the over-
2. This question may generate lively debate. Where should Terri Ronsin’s
loyalties lie? Is she working for the general manager of the division or
for the corporate controller? Is there anything wrong with the “Christ-
mas bonus”? How far should Terri go in bucking her boss on a new job?
While individuals can certainly disagree about what Terri should do,
some of the facts are indisputable. First, understating direct labor-hours
artificially inflates the overhead rate. This has the effect of inflating the
Cost of Goods Sold in all months prior to December and overstating the
costs of inventories. In December, the huge adjustment for overapplied
overhead provides a big boost to net operating income. Therefore, the
practice results in distortions in the pattern of net operating income over
the year. In addition, because all of the adjustment is taken to Cost of
Goods Sold, inventories are still overstated at year-end. This means, of
course, that the net operating income for the entire year is also over-