TechNet Leads Charge at Silicon Valley Rally in Opposition to Mandatory Stock Options Expensing.

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- FASB Proposal Would Dampen Innovation and Adversely Effect 14 Million Americans with Options

TechNet, the network of 200 CEOs and senior executives in the high tech and biotech communities, today helped organize a rally with hundreds of Silicon Valley high tech workers opposed to the Financial Accounting Standards Board's (FASB) misguided attempt to expense employee stock options.

The attempt by FASB will result in decreased innovation, economic growth and U.S. competitiveness.

"Employee stock options are one of the key ingredients for innovation and economic growth in this country," said Rick White, President and CEO of TechNet and chairman of the International Employee Stock Options Coalition (IESOC). "Many members of Congress understand this fact, and we need them to support America's workers and American innovation by telling FASB to do the right thing. Mandating that options be expensed will mean the end for many broad-based employee stock option plans. That's not what hard-working Americans want or what the U.S. economy needs to compete in the world."

FASB held morning and afternoon discussion sessions in Palo Alto to consider their proposal to mandate expensing of employee stock option plans. Among those speaking to the group were employees and executives from Silicon Valley bellwethers like Cisco Systems, Genentech, Intel, Qualcomm and Sun, as well as entrepreneurs from ME Fox and Visonael.Recent studies show that throughout the United States, 14 million American workers currently hold employee stock options. Many companies will be forced to curtail or eliminate their broad-based stock-option plans if they are required to expense their options.

In addition to company employees, speakers at the Reality in the Valley: Keep the Promise of Innovation Rally included former U.S. Representative Tom Campbell, Dean of the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley; Peter Giles, President and CEO of the Tech Museum of Innovation; Jim Cunneen, San Jose/Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce.

For more information, please visit: http://savestockoptions.grassroots.com/eventregistration/

About TechNet

TechNet is the national, bipartisan network of CEOs that promotes the growth of technology industries and the economy by building long-term relationships between technology leaders and policymakers and by advocating a targeted policy agenda. TechNet, based in Silicon Valley, has offices in Seattle, Boston, Austin, and Orange County (California).