Study: Majority Don't Measure Sarbanes-Oxley Cost

ByJohn S. McClenahen Lots of companies complain about the cost of complying with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the 2001 legislation designed to improve the quality of corporate financial reporting. However, a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) study being published today indicates that 56% of the firms it surveyed do not track and report internally on the costs of Sarbanes-Oxley and other compliance programs. Some 41% do track such costs, shows the study, which was conducted during the first calendar quarter of 2004. "Given the early outcry about Sarbanes-Oxley's added costs, it's surprising that most companies do not document and track this expense," says Dan DiFilippo, a PwC partner and U.S. practice leader for governance, risk and compliance. "However, many companies have only recently begun to understand the types of costs and value associated with compliance efforts," he adds. "We expect more aggressive monitoring as companies examine the effectiveness of their compliance approach."