The House and Senate have passed legislation aimed at combating fraud by accounting firms and corporate executives. Both chambers approved the measure on July 25the House vote was 423-3; the Senate's was 99-0. President Bush is expected to sign the bill.
The bill establishes a new oversight board for accounting firms, requires chief executive and chief financial officers to formally endorse their companies' financial reports, and bars corporations from using the same accounting firms to do audits and provide consulting services.