SEC Begins Small Business Costs and Benefits Study of Sarbanes-Oxley Act Section 404

Commission Proposes One-Year Extension of Final Compliance Requirements for Smaller Companies While Study Underway

Washington, D.C., Feb. 1, 2008 - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that its professional staff has commenced a cost-benefit study of an upcoming auditor attestation requirement for smaller companies under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

The study will collect and analyze extensive "real world" cost and benefit data from a broad array of companies currently complying with Section 404 under newly-issued guidance for companies and auditors. The new guidance for management and the new auditing standard were intended to reduce the compliance costs of Section 404 while strengthening its focus on material controls. In addition to assessing the Section 404 cost reductions resulting from the Commission's recent actions, the final report also will inform any decision to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Section 404 implementation.

In connection with the study, the four-member Commission unanimously proposed on Jan. 31, 2008, the one-year extension of the Section 404(b) auditor attestation requirement for smaller companies that SEC Chairman Christopher Cox had previously announced in testimony before the House Small Business Committee in December 2007. The postponement would allow time for completion of the study. Under the proposed extension, the Section 404(b) requirements would apply to smaller public companies beginning with fiscal years ending on or after Dec. 15, 2009.