SOX Center

The Securities and Exchange Commission today issued two releases to grant smaller public companies and many foreign private issuers further relief from compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.The subjects are:

1. Ref from Section 404 Compliance Dates for Smaller Companies (Non-Accelerated Filers).

The Commission is proposing to grant relief to smaller public companies by extending the date by which non-accelerated filers must start providing a report by management assessing the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. The initial compliance date for these companies would be moved from fiscal years ending on or after July 15, 2007, until fiscal years ending on or after Dec. 15, 2007.

2. Relief from Section 404(b) Compliance Date for Certain Foreign Private Issuers.

The Commission is granting relief from Section 404(b) compliance for foreign private issuers that are accelerated filers (but not large accelerated filers), and that file their annual reports on Form 20-F or 40-F. These companies will have their compliance deadline extended for an additional year, so that they will not begin complying with the Section 404(b) requirement to provide an auditor’s attestation report on internal control over financial reporting in their annual reports until fiscal years ending on or after July 15, 2007.

3. Proposed Transition Relief for Newly Public Companies.

In the same release in which it proposes an extension of the Section 404 compliance dates for non-accelerated filers, the Commission also proposes a transition period for newly public companies.

Here you will find the press release of the SEC.