FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2013-269
Washington D.C., Dec. 20, 2013 —
The Securities and Exchange Commission today issued a staff report to
Congress on its disclosure rules for U.S. public companies, as part of agency´s
ongoing efforts to modernize and simplify disclosure requirements and reduce
compliance costs for emerging growth companies.
The report, mandated by
Congress in the 2012 Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, offers an
overview of the SEC´s Regulation S-K that governs public company disclosure, as
well as the staff´s preliminary conclusions and recommendations.
"This
report provides a framework for disclosure reform," said SEC Chair Mary Jo
White. "As a next step, I have directed the staff to develop specific
recommendations for updating the rules that dictate what a company must disclose
in its filings. We will seek input from companies about how we can make
our disclosure rules work better for them and will solicit the views of
investors about what type of information they want and how it can be best
presented. The ultimate objective is for the Commission to improve the
disclosure regime for both companies and investors."
"Updating our
rules is only one step – albeit an important one – in improving company
disclosures," said Keith F. Higgins, Director of the SEC´s Division of
Corporation Finance. "For their part, companies should examine how they
can improve the quality and effectiveness of their disclosures and how our rules
can be improved to facilitate clear and effective communications to
investors. Better disclosure benefits everyone in the marketplace, and we
plan to work with companies and investors to achieve this common
goal."
As part of this effort, the SEC´s Office of the
Chief Accountant will coordinate with the Financial Accounting Standards Board
to identify ways to improve the effectiveness of disclosures in corporate
financial statements and to minimize duplication with other existing disclosure
requirements.
Chair White added, "I look forward to working with the
staff and market participants as we continue to refine the disclosure system to
provide investors with the information they need to make informed investment and
voting decisions."
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