As a result of advocacy efforts led by the BDA and the small firm committee, Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Doug Jones (D-AL) will introduce bipartisan legislation (The Small Business Audit Correction Act) that would exempt privately-held, non-custodial broker-dealer firms from the requirement to use a Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) registered audit firm for their annual audits. The bill is expected to be formally introduced in the Senate in the next two weeks.
Over the last month, BDA has been meeting with Members of the Senate Banking Committee to garner support for the bill. The BDA “boots on the ground” lobbying effort played an important role in gaining Senator Doug Jones as a co-sponsor of the bill. In addition, the bill language was drafted with direct input from BDA members.
The bill text can be viewed here and a summary of the bill can be viewed here.
BDA will be meeting with Members of the House Financial Services Committee in the coming weeks to garner support for the bill. We expect a bill to be introduced in the House soon.
Moving forward, BDA will continue to lobby for the bill on Capitol Hill and will provide updates as they become available.
