A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO COMPLIANCE (It Got Easier for Clos)

摘要

Congress Responds to Public Outrage by Passing Legislation. Hence, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, forged in the flames of the WorldCom, Tyco and Enron scandals. The act was intended to protect investors from executive fraud by requiring stricter standards for―and more oversight of―corporate accounting. As written, it's far-reaching―covering everything from who can sit on a board of directors to penalties for mistreating corporate whistle-blowers. And complying with it is potentially very expensive and time-consuming. When President George Bush signed the act into law in July 2002, corporate executives held their breath, waiting to see how the Securities and Exchange Com- mission would interpret it. (The law itself isn't as important as how the SEC chooses to apply and enforce it.) When the SEC proposed a strict interpretation three months later, they gulped. But when the SEC issued its final rule on the most important section of the law last June, they exhaled.