New legislation recently introduced in the US Senate aims to ensure that Sarbanes-Oxley Act regulations due to take effect in June do not disproportionately impact the nation’s small businesses.

The Small Business Regulatory Review Act of 2007 would require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) to take into account the burdens of small businesses before issuing final Sarbanes-Oxley rules.

Provisions in the Small Business Regulatory Review Act of 2007 would require: the SEC to conduct a small business analysis before the SEC and PCAOB publish final rules on small business internal control compliance; the SEC to publish a small business compliance guide explaining the SEC’s final rules in non-technical language; and the Government Accountability Office to assess the impact of the SEC’s final rules on small public companies two years after they are published.

“The Small Business Regulatory Review Act of 2007 will help to ensure that small stock companies do not suffer from additional unintended consequences that harm their ability to compete, innovate, grow, and, most importantly, create jobs,” stated Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME), Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Ranking Member, who introduced the bill. “Our nation’s small stock companies are the cornerstone of our entrepreneurial economy, and it is essential that we carefully address the regulatory barriers that impede their growth.”

[1] Investorsoffshore: Snowe Bill To Mitigate Sarbanes-Oxley Impact On US Small Firms