On Friday the SEC extended the compliance date for smaller public companies to meet the §404(b) auditor attestation requirement of SOX.

 

Smaller public companies must now begin including the auditor’s attestation in their annual reports for fiscal years ending on or after Dec. 15, 2009.

 

The SEC also announced that it received approval from the Office of Management and Budget to proceed with data collection for a study on the costs and benefits of implementing §404, particularly for smaller public companies.

 

As of this writing, the final amendment for the extension of §404(b) has not been posted on the SEC’s website. The amendment will be effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.

 

To read the press release, please visit http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2008/2008-116.htm.

 

To read the final amendment when it is available, please visit
http://www.sec.gov/rules/final.shtml.

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