WASHINGTON, July 30 (UPI) -- In the wake of the 3-year-old Sarbanes-Oxley Act, U.S. companies are experiencing higher audit fees and increased turnover among financial executives.
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, approved by Congress in 2003 after a series of financial scandals, has imposed numerous duties on corporate officials. Analysts say the law has induced executives to pay more attention to financial data, the Washington Post reported Saturday.
"Disclosure is more complete, more timely and more accurate, managers are more serious about their jobs, and boards are more active and questioning," Harvey J. Goldschmid, a departing Securities and Exchange Commission member, said in an interview with the Post. "All of that is to the good."
However, some say the law may be too onerous.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce wants the Securities and Exchange Commission to ease some of the burdens of the law. The trade group argues that audit fees for the Fortune 1000 increased by an average of $2.3 million, or 66 percent, between 2003 and 2004, according to a study by University of Nebraska at Omaha.
