Private Enterprise, Public Trust: The State of Corporate America After Sarbanes-Oxley

The highly visible accounting scandals that surrounded the collapse of Enron, WorldCom, and several other major companies -- together with the revelation of fraud and other acts of malfeasance by corporate executives -- aroused public outrage, called into question the values and ethics of business leaders, and undermined the public's confidence in public companies. CED is concerned about the reality, as well as the appearance, of corporate impropriety. This policy statement examines the state of corporate governance in the United States and offers practical recommendations for restoring public trust in business. Recommendations include:- Making Audit Committees Autonomous and Vigorous- Ensuring that users understand that financial information is based on judgments- Giving Sarbanes-Oxley a chance to work- Taming excessive executive compensation- Using independent nominating committees to select and appraise director