Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Securities and Investment, made the following comments on the recent decision by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to give public companies six more months to adopt a new standard for valuing stock options.
"FASB is right to slow down its stock option proposal, but a delay should occur because FASB is working to test the accuracy of the evaluation formulas, not because it wants to give companies more time to prepare for implementing a flawed proposal."
"I have long believed that this proposal needs to be thoroughly evaluated due to the implications the proposal will have on small businesses. The development of entrepreneurial companies and the small business community should not have to absorb the shock of a proposal that has not been thoroughly tested and could cause irreversible harm.
"Despite the delay, the underlying problem remains that FASB is not field testing evaluation models. The proposal ignores widespread valuation concerns and could create significant liability concerns if the wrong valuation model is chosen by a company. While FASB's delay is warranted, the implementation date coincides with Sarbanes-Oxley deadlines. Small businesses aren't going to be able to meet all these deadlines with their limited resources.
"An overwhelming majority of the House and a majority of the Senate believe the SEC should take a closer look at the FASB standard with respect to valuation concerns. The senators who have expressed concern include leadership from both parties, most of the members of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Senate Banking Committee. This speaks volumes about the flaws with the FASB rule and something needs to be done."
"FASB is right to slow down its stock option proposal, but a delay should occur because FASB is working to test the accuracy of the evaluation formulas, not because it wants to give companies more time to prepare for implementing a flawed proposal."
"I have long believed that this proposal needs to be thoroughly evaluated due to the implications the proposal will have on small businesses. The development of entrepreneurial companies and the small business community should not have to absorb the shock of a proposal that has not been thoroughly tested and could cause irreversible harm.
"Despite the delay, the underlying problem remains that FASB is not field testing evaluation models. The proposal ignores widespread valuation concerns and could create significant liability concerns if the wrong valuation model is chosen by a company. While FASB's delay is warranted, the implementation date coincides with Sarbanes-Oxley deadlines. Small businesses aren't going to be able to meet all these deadlines with their limited resources.
"An overwhelming majority of the House and a majority of the Senate believe the SEC should take a closer look at the FASB standard with respect to valuation concerns. The senators who have expressed concern include leadership from both parties, most of the members of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Senate Banking Committee. This speaks volumes about the flaws with the FASB rule and something needs to be done."
-end-
