While the costs associated with complying with the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act
may be falling,
small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) still have work to do.
Take our quiz to get caught up with the latest in Senate rulings
and
compliance costs. When you're done,
let us know what kind
of Sarbanes-Oxley advice you'd like to see on SearchSMB.com.
In
"Sarbanes-Oxley 404 exemption defeat means status
quo for SMBs," Senior News Writer Linda Tucci reports that
the U.S. Senate snuffed out a Republican-led effort to loosen
Sarbanes-Oxley compliance rules for SMBs. Read the story to
answer the following four questions:
1. How many Senators voted against the amendment?
a. 62
b. 35
c. 24
Answer
2. The defeated amendment would have made compliance with
Section 404 optional for SMBs with a total market value of:
a. Less than $70 million
b. More than $700 million
c. Less than $700 million
Answer
3. SMBs of what size have already been exempt from providing the
audited internal control reports required by Section 404?
a. Less than $100 million in public equity
b. Less than $75 million in public equity
c. Less than $50 million in public equity
Answer
4. Who is the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission?
a. Jim DeMint
b. Michael Shokouhi
c. Christopher Cox
Answer
In
"Sarbanes-Oxley compliance costs drop, better
processes credited," News Writer Shamus McGillicuddy reports
that a new survey found that Sarbanes-Oxley compliance is
getting cheaper. Read the story to answer the following four
questions:
5. How much did the average company's Sarbanes-Oxley compliance
costs drop to in 2006?
a. $2.9 million
b. $3.8 million
c. $4.5 million
Answer
6. How many hours did the average company spend on implementing
IT-based controls in 2006, according to the study?
a. 4,700
b. 6,000
c. 2,500
Answer
7. How much did external auditor fees drop by in 2006?
a. 10%
b. 11%
c. 12%
Answer
8. Compared with the $1.67 million spent by companies with
consolidated IT systems, how much did decentralised companies with
multiple systems report spending on compliance in 2006?
a. $2.53 million
b. $3.79 million
c. $4.86 million
Answer
In
"Sarbanes-Oxley advice for smaller, public
companies," expert James Champy offers some tips for those
trying to do more with less in achieving compliance. Read his
column to answer the following two questions:
9. What are some of the compliance challenges for smaller
companies?
a. They typically don't have full-time financial
controllers.
b. Managers have a broad span of control.
c. Lack of well-documented processes.
d. All of the above.
Answer
10. Whom does Champy suggest IT managers at SMBs talk to about
controls that need to be operating within your shop and what
attestations you will be asked to make?
a. Your CFO
b. Your CEO
c. Both your CFO and CEO
Answer