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Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox told the largest U.S. business lobby he opposes weakening the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, rejecting the group’s claim that the law has made the nation’s financial markets less competitive.

“We don’t need to change the law,'’ Cox said today at a Washington summit hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We need to change the way it is implemented.'’

Business groups say U.S. laws and regulations need to be revised for the country to maintain its financial dominance. The Chamber advised in a report this week that Congress hand off oversight of Sarbanes-Oxley to the SEC, where it would be easier for regulators to adapt it to “evolving market circumstances.'’

“I want to state clearly this morning that I disagree'’ with the Chamber’s recommendation, Cox said in his first public rebuttal of the business group’s report. “Remember where we were and what happened. We needed decisive action, and Sarbanes-Oxley delivered'’ after accounting frauds eroded investor confidence, he said.

Bloomberg:.com: SEC’s Cox Says He Opposes Weakening Sarbanes-Oxley (Update5)

Political sentiment runs in predictable cycles. In the midst of the stock-market bubble, no one cared about regulation and oversight. Everyone was making too much money to bother.

Then the money machine stopped, companies such as Enron and WorldCom blew up with their spectacular accounting frauds, and everyone was screaming for blood. A few perp walks and one big legislative package later, we entered the Sarbanes-Oxley era.

The avalanche of multibillion-dollar corporate implosions stopped. Many companies are still sorting out the impact of realistic options expensing going back several years, but the shakeout from that exercise is almost over.

What are we left with? A much fairer playing field for the individual investor. Between Sarbanes-Oxley shoring up the integrity of company accounts, and Regulation Fair Disclosure (better known as Reg FD) limiting leaks of inside information, the market is a better place to invest in than it was in summer 2000, by far.

Motley Fool: I love Sarbanes-Oxley