SEC Issues Concept Release Seeking Comments On Enhanced Disclosures For Audit Committees

On 1 July 2015, the SEC published a "concept" release to solicit input on possible revisions to audit committee reporting requirements, with a focus on the audit committee's reporting of its responsibilities with respect to its oversight of the independent auditor. Some have expressed a view that the SEC's disclosure rules for this area may not result in disclosures about audit committees and their activities that are sufficient to help investors understand and evaluate audit committee performance, which may in turn inform those investors' investment or voting decisions.

The majority of the SEC's current disclosure requirements relating to audit committees, which are found principally in Item 407 of Regulation S-K, were adopted in 1999. Since then, there have been significant changes in the role and responsibilities of audit committees arising out of, among other things, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, enhanced listing requirements for audit committees, enhanced