| This thesis examined the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) on small-sized publicly traded businesses in America and the communities they operate in. This Act (Sarbanes-Oxley Act) was enacted by the U.S Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2002. The Act has had very devastating and detrimental impacts on small-sized publicly traded businesses and the communities they operate in; according to opponents of the Act, they pointed out the financial burden that many small-sized publicly traded companies had to face in the process of complying with the Act. For example, they pointed to the enormous cost of purchasing new equipment (i.e., computers) in order to comply with the requirements of the Act. The most devastating and toughest element of the Act, according to the opponents of the Act, was the requirement that publicly traded companies hire outside auditors to audit and attest to the stability and viability of their internal control systems. As a result of the stringent requirements of the Act and the costs that is associated with the requirements, many small-sized publicly traded companies have either closed down or de-listed themselves from the U.S securities markets (U.S stock exchanges). |
