Washington, D.C., Aug. 11, 2004 Legal news, law news, law firm news & research at LAWFUEL – The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that it will host its annual Government-Business Forum on Small Business Capital Formation on Monday, Sept. 20, 2004, at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The SEC has hosted the forum annually for 23 years under the mandate of a 1980 statute. The forum offers an opportunity for representatives of smaller companies to meet with senior government officials and communicate their views on small business capital formation.
The format for this year’s forum will include two roundtable sessions in the morning followed by breakout group sessions in the afternoon. The SEC is recruiting experts in various aspects of small business capital formation to participate in the roundtable discussions. The first roundtable will discuss developments in auditing and their impact on smaller public companies, including recently adopted rules requiring certification of internal control over financial reporting. The second roundtable will discuss current challenges to smaller public companies under securities law rules relating to disclosure in SEC filings and corporate governance. The roundtable sessions will be open to the public and simulcast over the Internet through the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The discussions will be held in the William O. Douglas Conference Room at the SEC’s headquarters at 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549.
Anyone present and registered for the forum will be able to participate in the afternoon breakout group discussions. The purpose of the breakout groups is to develop recommendations for improving small business capital formation through legislation, regulation and private action. All registered participants who are present will have an opportunity to vote on the recommendations at the end of the day.
The SEC intends to publish a list of topics to be discussed and a list of participants in the roundtable sessions in the near future. Members of the public who wish to suggest topics for discussion at the roundtable sessions or recommendations to be considered in the breakout groups should e-mail them to the SEC’s Office of Small Business Policy at smallbusiness@SEC.gov or, in the alternative, mail them to the Office at 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549-0310.
Registration and other information on this year’s forum, as well as copies of the final reports of previous SEC Forums on Small Business Capital Formation, are available by calling the Office of Small Business Policy at (202) 942-2950 or visiting the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov/info/smallbus/sbforum.shtml.
