SOX Center

Jack Ciesielski submits: CFO.com reports that Senators John Kerry (Massachusetts) and Olympia Snowe (Maine) have sent another letter to SEC Chairman Christopher Cox requesting further delay in the implementation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act’s Section 404 for small companies.

It’s deja vu all over again: they sent a letter to him last February on the same subject.

Here’s a link to the letter. The senators didn’t ask for a specific extension - but wanted an answer from Chairman Cox in 30 days. Last time, the specifically asked the SEC to give small firms until the end of 2008 to have management report on their internal controls, and another year afterwards for the auditors to report on the same.

Yahoo.com: The Protected Class: Senators’ Request For Sarbox Delay - Part II

Phoenix, a new computer system, should simplify tracking, collecting, and distributing billions of dollars of penalties, says Chairman Cox in his budget statement.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is creating a new office dedicated to disbursing money to investors harmed in securities-fraud cases.

Under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC became the fund holder for the disgorgement and fines it collects in such cases. While the regulator has done a good job of collecting and putting aside the cash, it has fallen behind with getting the money back to harmed investors, according to SEC chairman Christopher Cox. On Tuesday, Cox acknowledged that “too much money is still undisbursed.”

The commission has struggled in identifying claimants and keeping track of the funds, according to Cox. As a result, the SEC is creating the new office and a new computer system, he said during a Congressional appropriations meeting where he discussed President Bush’s proposed $905 million allotment for the SEC’s 2008 budget.

CFO.com: SEC Unit Eyes Swifter Fraud Payouts

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has launched a new center dedicated to lobbying Congress to ease Sarbanes-Oxley requirements and “strengthen the competitiveness of U.S. capital markets.”

The Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness (CCMC) was announced last week during the Chamber’s Capital Market Summit.

The Chamber represents 3 million businesses and wants to see the rules relaxed, but its summit Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Cox said he opposes weakening the law.

“We don’t need to change the law,” Cox said. “We need to change the way it is implemented.”

In a statement, the Chamber said the new center will address domestic and international securities regulation, as well as challenges to the auditing profession, proxy rules, business due process, and a host of other issues.

SmartPros: U.S. Chamber Launches New Center