SEC requires regular certifications. (Update).IN KEEPING WITH requirements set forth by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act See SOX. of 2002, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved new rules that will require the chief executive officers (CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. ) and chief financial officers (CFO See Chief Financial Officer. ) of U.S. publicly traded companies publicly traded company A company whose shares of common stock are held by the public and are available for purchase by investors. The shares of publicly traded firms are bought and sold on the organized exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. to certify cer·ti·fy v. cer·ti·fied, cer·ti·fy·ing, cer·ti·fies v.tr. 1. a. To confirm formally as true, accurate, or genuine. b. the contents of their quarterly and annual reports on an ongoing basis. The release of these rules follows a similar one-time order by the SEC just two months prior that affected 947 companies with revenues greater than $1.2 billion. The new SEC rules, the first in a series of Sarbanes-Oxley-based regulations to be enacted during the coming months, will affect [pounds sterling]5,000 companies whose stock is traded on the U.S. exchanges, including more than 1,300 companies based outside the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. . SEC representatives admit that they cannot possibly monitor all certifications. Instead, the SEC staff plans to review reports on a spot basis. The rules, which apply to reports filed after Aug. 29, 2002, require each organization to establish and maintain an overall system of disclosure, controls, and procedures adequate to meet its reporting obligations. Requirements also tighten regulations for registered investment companies and will gradually phase in accelerated filing deadlines for annual and quarterly reports. In certifying the contents of financial statements, CEOs and CFOs acknowledge that: * They have reviewed the report and, based on their knowledge, the report fairly presents the organization's financial condition and the results of operations and does not contain any untrue statement or omit o·mit tr.v. o·mit·ted, o·mit·ting, o·mits 1. To fail to include or mention; leave out: omit a word. 2. a. To pass over; neglect. b. any necessary fact. * They have assumed responsibility for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures. * They have disclosed to the company's auditors and audit committee all significant internal control deficiencies and any fraud involving employees who have a significant role in the company's internal controls. * They have indicated in their report whether there were significant changes in internal controls or other factors that could significantly affect internal controls subsequent to the date of their evaluation. For more detailed information about the new regulations, visit the SEC's Web site at www.sec.gov. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion