December 5, 2008
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House

H.R. 3725, Investment Disclosure Act
Sponsor: Rep. Major Owens, D-N.Y.
Introduced: Feb. 12, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Description: H.R. 3725 would require the top officials in publicly traded companies to provide same-day notification when they sell shares of stock in their companies. The bill would require that the information be filed electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which then would post it to the Internet. Companies also would have to publish the details of the sales to their Web sites. The measure was introduced after the bankruptcy of the energy company Enron, some of whose executives sold stock at huge profits just before the company's collapse. Related bills, H.R. 3769 and S. 1897, also were introduced.
H.R. 3763, Corporate and Auditing Accountability, Responsibility and Transparency Act
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Oxley, R-Ohio
Introduced: Feb. 14, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Final Action: Signed into law (PL 107-204)
Description: H.R. 3763 seeks to restore investor confidence in the accounting profession and capital markets. Introduced after the 2001 collapse of the Enron energy firm, which largely has been credited to flawed accounting practices, the bill would create new firewalls and a "public regulatory organization," or PRO, to oversee the accounting industry. The aim of the PRO would be to ensure the independence of auditors for publicly traded companies like Enron and many technology companies. Under the legislation, companies also would have to provide more public information about their financial health -- and provide it more quickly. Among other things, the measure also would authorize a nearly 50 percent increase in the Securities and Exchange Commission's budget to enable it to perform more oversight.
H.R. 3764, Securities and Exchange Commission Authorization Act
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Oxley, R-Ohio
Introduced: Feb. 14, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Final Action: Passed by the House
Description: H.R. 3764 would reauthorize funding for the Securities and Exchange Commission. Fiscal 2003 funding under the measure would total $700 million, with at least $134 million reserved for the Division of Corporate Finance and at least $326 million for the Division of Enforcement.
H.R. 3769, Insider Trading Full Disclosure Act
Sponsor: Rep. Ken Bentsen, D-Texas
Introduced: Feb. 14, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Description: H.R. 3769 would require the top officials in publicly traded companies to provide same-day notification when they sell shares of stock in their companies. The bill would require that the information be filed electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which then would post it to the Internet. Companies also would have to publish the details of the sales to their Web sites. The measure was introduced after the bankruptcy of the energy company Enron, some of whose executives sold stock at huge profits just before the company's collapse. Related bills, H.R. 3725 and S. 1897, also were introduced.
H.R. 3791, Small Business High Technology Entrepreneurship Act
Sponsor: Rep. Steve Israel, D-N.Y.
Introduced: Feb. 26, 2002
Committee: House Small Business
Description: H.R. 3791 would authorize the Small Business Administration (SBA) to make loans to small businesses in the biotechnology, computer and electronics fields. The loans could be for up to $5 million, with the amount to be determined by the SBA chief and a regional nonprofit organization that would serve as a technology consultant. The regions eligible for the loans would be Nassau and Suffolk counties in New York, and Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties in California.
H.R. 3818, Comprehensive Investor Protection Act
Sponsor: Rep. John LaFalce, D-N.Y.
Introduced: Feb. 28, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Description: H.R. 3813 aims to grant increased protection to investors by regulating auditors and financial disclosures. The bill would establish a Public Accounting Regulatory Board to create auditing standards and review accounting firms, and it would prohibit firms from conducting non-audit and audit services for the same clients. The legislation also would require the Securities and Exchange Commission to increase financial disclosures for companies' off-balance-sheet transactions, insider transactions and transactions with philanthropic organizations. The legislation was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
H.R. 3840, Inside Stock Sales Employee Notification Act
Sponsor: Rep. George Miller, D-Calif.
Introduced: March 5, 2002
Committee: House Education and the Workforce
Description: H.R. 3840 would require company executives who sell their personally held stock in their firm to immediately notify officials with the company pension plans of the transactions. Notice would have to be provided within one business day, and administrators of the pension plans would have to report the information to participants within three business days.
H.R. 3970, Truth and Accountability in Accounting Act
Sponsor: Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.
Introduced: March 14, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services, Energy and Commerce
Description: H.R. 3970 seeks to improve accounting standards by establishing an Independent National Board of Accountancy (INBA). Among other things, the board, under the scrutiny of the Securities and Exchange Commission, would enforce accounting standards and have the power to penalize violators. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
H.R. 5058, Financial Accounting Standards Board Act
Sponsor: Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla.
Introduced: June 27, 2002
Committee: House Energy and Commerce
Description: H.R. 5058 would recognize the authority of accounting standards set by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and increase the independence of that board. The bill would require accountants to adhere to standards set by FASB, with an emphasis on the transparency and clarity of financial statement. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
H.R. 5070, Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act
Sponsor: Rep. John LaFalce, D-N.Y.
Introduced: July 9, 2002
Committee: House Financial Services
Description: H.R. 5070 would create a Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to regulate auditing and accounting services. The board would require registration for all public accounting firms and would be charged with ensuring that the firms' audits are lawful. Accountants could not provide audit and non-audit services to the same firm simultaneously or audit companies where their officers recently served. The legislation would require that CEOs and chief financial officers reimburse their companies for any bonuses or profits from personal stock sales they received in years when the companies misreport financial statements. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
H.R. 5094, Untitled
Sponsor: Rep. Mark Kirk, R-Ill.
Introduced: July 11, 2002
Committee: House Government Reform
Description: H.R. 5094 would establish a Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board, a nine-person panel that would study accounting standards for federal agencies. The board would investigate how best to stop misreporting or errors in agencies' financial statements.
H.R. 5118, Corporate Fraud Accountability Act
Sponsor: Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis.
Introduced: July 15, 2002
Committee: House Judiciary, Finance
Description: H.R. 5118 would provide for enhanced penalties for accounting and auditing improprieties at publicly traded companies, and for other purposes.
H.R. 5147, Stock-Option Accounting Reform Act
Sponsor: Rep. Mary Bono, R-Calif.
Introduced: July 17, 2002
Committee: House Energy and Commerce
Description: H.R. 5147 would mandate that companies record as expenses the value of the stock options they give to employees, an idea strongly opposed by the technology industry. The measure is one of several initiatives aimed at reforming the accounting industry.
H.R. 5160, Business, Investors' and Employees' Bill of Rights Act
Sponsor: Rep. Richard Gephardt, D-Mo.
Introduced: July 18, 2002
Committee: House Financial, Ways and Means, Judiciary, Education and the Workforce
Description: H.R. 5160 would raise penalties for corporate fraud and take other steps designed to improve corporate accountability. The bill also seeks to discourage U.S. corporations from leaving the United States to evade taxes. The measure would set criminal penalties for altering documents and defrauding shareholders of publicly traded companies. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
H.R. 5432, Untitled
Sponsor: Rep. Robert Matsui, D-Calif.
Introduced: Sept. 24, 2002
Committee: House Ways and Means
Description: H.R. 5432 aims to curtail the preferential financial treatment shown to some CEOs of major corporations. The bill would impose a tax penalty on any executives selling company stock acquired from stock options. It also would end protected and bankruptcy-proof "deferred compensation" benefits to top executives. In addition, tax penalties would be imposed on those corporations providing lavish perks to retiring executives unless shareholders understand and approve the benefits.
H.R. 5242, Workplace Employee Stock Option Act
Sponsor: Rep. Amo Houghton, R-NY
Introduced: July 26, 2002
Committee: House Ways and Means
Description: H.R. 5242 would amend the tax code in order to encourage the granting of employee stock options. Under the bill, options would be granted only through payroll deductions in substantially equal amounts over a period of one year and not more than 60 months. The price of the stock acquired could not be less than the fair-market value, and ownership of the stock would be transferred to the individual at the end of the payroll period.
H.R. 5323, Investor Protection, Market Stabilization, and Tax Fairness Restoration Act of 2002
Sponsor: Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif.
Introduced: Sept. 4, 2002
Committee: Ways and Means
Description: H.R.5323 would give individual company shareholders a credit for federal income tax already paid on dividends that they receive. The aim of the bill is to help people who have been hurt by the stock-market decline and are saving their money for retirement.

Senate

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S. 1897, Fully Informed Investor Act
Sponsor: Sen. Jean Carnahan, D-Mo.
Introduced: Jan. 24, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 1897 would require the top officials in publicly traded companies to provide same-day notification when they sell shares of stock in their companies. The bill would require that the information be filed electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which then would post it to the Internet. Companies also would have to publish the details of the sales to their Web sites. The bill was introduced after the bankruptcy of the energy company Enron, some of whose executives sold stock at huge profits just before the company's collapse. Related bills, H.R. 3725 and H.R. 3769, also were introduced.
S. 1933, Investor Protection Act
Sponsor: Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala.
Introduced: Feb. 12, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 1933 would expand the liability for financial services professionals who disseminate inaccurate financial information. Technology industry officials say the bill would expose firms to frivolous lawsuits and fail to prevent business practices like those that triggered the collapse of the energy firm Enron, which is the motivation behind the legislation. The measure would overhaul the 1995 Private Securities Litigation Act.
S. 1940, Ending The Double Standards For Stock Options Act
Sponsor: Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.
Introduced: Feb. 13, 2002
Committee: Senate Finance
Description: S. 1940 seeks to close what bill sponsors Carl Levin, D-Mich., and John McCain, R-Ariz., see as a loophole in the federal tax code concerning the use of stock options in employee compensation packages. The bill would require that deductions for stock options be included in corporate records for tax purposes. Under current law, firms can claim tax deductions for stock options but do not have to count their value as expenses on their balance sheets.
S. 2004, Investor Confidence in Public Accounting Act
Sponsor: Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.
Introduced: March 8, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 2004 aims to improve the accounting system by increasing the Securities and Exchange Commission's accounting staff, creating an independent accounting oversight board, and setting standards for accounting firms and financial disclosures. The bill would create an Independent Public Accounting Board, overseen by the SEC, that would establish audit guidelines for accounting firms. It would prohibit accounting firms from providing non-audit and audit services to clients at the same time and from auditing companies whose chief financial officers worked for the accounting firms within the previous two years. The bill would double the SEC's accounting staff and instruct the SEC to require firms to submit periodic financial disclosure statements. The legislation was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
S. 2056, Integrity in Auditing Act
Sponsor: Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.
Introduced: March 21, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 2056 aims to ensure that accounting firms are independent of the firms that they audit. The bill would prohibit accountants from providing non-audit services to audit clients and, for a one-year period, would prevent outside accountants from management-level employment in companies they audited. The bill also would require that firms rotate their auditors every seven years and would require that company directors disclose their relationships to their auditor. The bill was one of many introduced after several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
S. 2247, Truth in Auditing Act
Sponsor: Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.
Introduced: April 24, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 2247 would regulate public accounting firms by creating a five-member Independent Public Accounting Oversight Board. All accounting firms would be required to register with the board, which would create auditing standards and investigate and punish companies that do not meet those standards. The board would be funded through fees based on the total revenue of the auditing firms. The bill also would require that companies rotate auditing firms every seven years. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
S. 2455, National Small Business Regulatory Assistance Act
Sponsor: Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev.
Introduced: May 2, 2002
Committee: Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Description: S. 2455 aims to bring small businesses into compliance with federal and state regulations. It would establish a pilot program to give small businesses free educational materials, administer training sessions for them and arrange free, confidential counseling sessions for individual businesses. The Small Business Administration would choose two states from each of five groups of 10 to participate in the pilot.
S. 2460, Shareholder Bill of Rights Act
Sponsor: Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.
Introduced: May 6, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 2460 is an accounting reform bill that would allow the Securities and Exchange Commission to delegate responsibility for setting accounting and reporting standards to a non-governmental organization such as the Financial Accounting Standards Board. Under the bill, dubbed the "Shareholder Bill of Rights," at least one-third of the organization's membership would have to represent investors and the public. Accountants would be prohibited from providing audit and non-audit services to the same company within two years or accepting a position with a company they have audited. The legislation also would require shareholder approval for stock-options plans if the options are not recorded as expenses on financial statements, and it would require public disclosure of loans to company officers. The bill was one of many introduced in the wake of several accounting scandals and huge corporate bankruptcies in 2001 and 2002. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
S. 2673, Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act
Sponsor: Sen. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md.
Introduced: June 25, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Final Action:Passed by the Senate
Description: S. 2673 seeks to restore investor confidence in the wake of several accounting scandals in 2001 and 2002. The measure would create the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, whose five full-time members would be appointed by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The board would be funded independently by public companies and would maintain standards of ethics, quality, independence and auditing for accounting firms that audit publicly held companies. The board could enforce regulations and impose discipline where necessary. In addition, the bill would set standards to ensure auditors' independence. The bill is one of several that would initiate accounting reforms. President Bush signed a competing measure, H.R. 3763, into law July 30, 2002.
S. 2760, Stock Option Fairness and Accountability Act
Sponsor: Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo.
Introduced: July 19, 2002
Committee: Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S.2760 would require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to study the accounting treatment of stock options and recommend changes. The SEC could review and analyze numerous stock-option issues, including disclosure, corporate governance, and the potential benefits and detriments of requiring firms to record employees stock options as expenses. The recommendations would go to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), which would decide whether to implement or further examine the SEC's suggestions.
S. 2810, Untitled
Sponsor: Sen. Ernest (Fritz) Hollings, D-S.C.
Introduced: July 26, 2002
Committee: None
Final Action: Signed into law (PL 107-233)
Description: S. 2810 would extend the deadlines for the initial public offering of stock for Intelsat, a global satellite communications provider. The Oct. 1, 2001, deadline would be changed to Dec. 31, 2003, and the Dec. 31, 2002, deadline would be changed to June 30, 2004. Bill sponsor Ernest (Fritz) Hollings, D-S.C., said the extension is necessary because of current troubles in the telecommunications industry. The Senate passed the bill by voice vote July 26, 2002.
S. 2822, Prevention of Stock-Option Abuse Act
Sponsor: Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.
Introduced: July 30, 2002
Committee: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Description: S. 2822 would change the rules governing companies' grants of stock options to corporate executives. The bill would direct the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue rules applicable to all publicly traded companies. Under the bill, shareholders would have to approve stock-option plans, a substantial vesting period for options and holding periods for stock shares would be established, and better and more frequent information would have to be provided to shareholders and investors.
S. 2877, Rank and File Stock Option Act
Sponsor: Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn.
Introduced: Aug. 1, 2002
Committee: Senate Finance
Description: S. 2877 would provide tax incentives to encourage companies to grant at least half of available stock options to non-executives, a category that would be defined as people making less than $90,000 a year. The bill also would require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to formulate procedures for shareholder approval of options plans. And it would require the SEC to create rules on how long executives must hold company stocks and when they can sell them.
S.3143, Consumer and Shareholder Protection Association Act
Sponsor: Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn.
Introduced: Oct. 17, 2002
Committee: Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation
Description: S. 3143 would establish a Consumer and Shareholder Protection Association. Introduced in the wake of financial collapses by major firms such as the now-bankrupt WorldCom telecommunications provider, the bill would create an entity separate from government in an effort to improve the flow of information about public companies to consumers and shareholders, and to develop data designed to help shareholders make informed marketplace decisions. The board also would seek to represent consumers in federal policymaking discussions. Bill sponsor Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., died in a plane crash just days after filing the measure.
S. Res. 264
Sponsor: Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.
Introduced: May 8, 2002
Committee: Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Final Action:Passed by the Senate
Description: S. Res. 264 seeks to encourage the participation of small businesses in homeland security efforts. The resolution expresses the Senate's view that federal, state and local governments should find and purchase innovative technologies created by small businesses to use to combat terrorism. The resolution states that small businesses often have less opportunity to enter contracts with the government. It also asks the government to provide more tech research opportunities for small businesses. The Senate cleared the non-binding resolution by voice vote July 8, 2002.

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