As businesses not yet required to comply with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act await their fate, two new surveys released this month show second-year compliance costs eased somewhat for companies.
The reports, from Financial Executives International and CRA International, come as an advisory committee to the Securities and Exchange Commission puts the final touches on a report where it will recommend, among other things, that the SEC exempt small companies from Section 404. That provision of Sarbanes-Oxley requires companies to assess the effectiveness of their internal controls over financial reporting and to have external auditors attest to and report on that assessment.
