SOX Center

Small public companies nationwide now face major Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance headaches. The root of their discomfort is the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) controversial yet unanimous decision on May 23 not to extend the SOX compliance deadline for companies with less than $75 million in market capital.

Fortunately for small business CEOs and CFOs, renewed peace of mind could be as simple as making a couple of two-day trips to Las Vegas or Orange County.

Well, it’s maybe not that simple. The solution isn’t a couple of weekends partying in ‘Vegas or two trips to the Magic Kingdom. Instead, DG Keeton Resources invites small business executives to lock themselves in for an intensive four-day SOX training conference to be held over a pair of two-day sessions during August and September.

Yahoo!: Small Public Companies Can Receive Valuable Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance Guidance During Intensive Four-Day Conferences

The Office of Advocacy today praised Securities and Exchange (SEC) Commissioners Paul Atkins and Kathleen Casey for their willingness to reconsider the SEC decision not to extend the deadline for small public firm compliance with section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Advocacy wrote to the commissioners in the wake of the SEC’s decision not to grant postponement of deadlines for public firms with less than $75 million in market value.

In the letter Chief Counsel for Advocacy Thomas M. Sullivan asked the SEC to revisit the issue of compliance deadline extensions for smaller public firms. This request mirrors that of recent letters to the SEC by Senators John Kerry (D- Mass.), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship, and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), the Ranking Member.

Kansas City infoZine News: SEC Should Reconsider Sarbanes-Oxley Extensions for Small Business

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.