Case Study: FASB ASC 730-25-1

2. As a for-profit entity, my company must record the amount of the donation as an expense at the fair value of the donated asset. In this case, my company must recognized a loss of eight thousand dollars, simply because the fair value of my donated asset is two thousand dollars. Furthermore, I must update my books by debiting “Contribution Expense” and “Loss on disposal of x asset” for $2,000 and $8,000 crediting the asset for $10,000. In this case, the fair value of my asset was lower than its book value forcing me to recognize a loss on my contribution.

FASB ASC 845-10-30-1 In general, the accounting for nonmonetary transactions should be based on the fair values of the assets (or services) involved, which is the same basis as that
Materials, equipment, and facilities. The costs of materials (whether from the entity's normal inventory or acquired specially for research and development activities) and equipment or facilities that are acquired or constructed for research and development activities and that have alternative future uses (in research and development projects or otherwise) shall be capitalized as tangible assets when acquired or constructed. The cost of such materials consumed in research and development activities and the depreciation of such equipment or facilities used in those activities are research and development costs. However, the costs of materials, equipment, or facilities that are acquired or constructed for a particular research and development project and that have no alternative future uses (in other research and development projects or otherwise) and therefore no separate economic values are research and development costs at the time the costs are incurred. See Topic 360 for guidance related to property, plant, and equipment; the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets Subsections of Subtopic 360-10 for guidance related to impairment and disposal; and paragraphs 360-10-35-2 through 35-6 for guidance related to
Intangible assets purchased from others. The costs of intangible assets that are purchased from others for use in research and development activities and that have alternative future uses (in research and development projects or otherwise) shall be accounted for in accordance with Topic 350. The amortization of those intangible assets used in research and development activities is a research and development cost. However, the costs of intangibles that are purchased from others for a particular research and development project and that have no alternative future uses (in other research and development projects or otherwise) and therefore no separate economic values are research and development costs at the time the costs are