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The SEC’s five commissioners are planning to propose changes to the audit rule of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Widely criticized by business for being costly and time-consuming, the law’s Section 404 requires auditors to review corporations’ financial controls in order to catch potential fraud.

Opposition to the rules, which were passed by Congress in the wake of financial scandals at companies like Enron and WorldCom, has been heating up recently. Last week, a high-profile panel of chief executives and academics co-chaired by a former economic adviser to President Bush said regulations including Sarbanes-Oxley are hurting U.S. competitiveness. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is also scheduled to propose changes to the audit rule at a Dec. 19 meeting.

Some foreign firms have found complying with U.S. regulations including Sarbanes-Oxley to be difficult, prompting concerns about capital flight from U.S. markets. On Wednesday, the SEC will also decide on proposing new rules that would make it easier for foreign companies to withdraw from the U.S. market.

That dovetails with a recommendation made by the executives’ panel on Nov. 30. They argued foreign companies will be more willing to come to U.S. markets if they know they can leave. According to the SEC, commissioners will consider a recommendation to base deregistration thresholds solely on trading volume instead of on both volume and the percentage of U.S. holders.

MarketWatch:SEC to mull hedge-fund, Sarbanes Oxley rules