Mike Levin: “one year ago today, the public first began to learn of the accounting frauds that led to the collapse of Enron…”

“one year ago today, the public first began to learn of the accounting frauds that led to the collapse of Enron Corporation. For the first time, investors learned of special purpose entities used to make Enron's financial condition look better than it was and of partnerships run by Enron's chief financial officer. One year ago today, the press first reported the $1 billion loss in Enron's shareholder equity and a $700 million loss in earnings. Less than 2 months later, Enron's reputation as a well-run company and a good investment morphed into that of a bankrupt operation with billions in unpaid debt. As the scandal unfolded, Enron's employees lost their jobs and their pensions. Its stockholders lost their shirts. Its accounting firm lost its credibility and its ability to operate as an auditor. About the only ones to walk away from Enron's fall intact were a number of executives who pocketed millions of dollars in compensation despite the company's collapse. Other executives are now beginning to pay the piper for their misdeeds. Of course, Enron was only the beginning. Within 6 months, the press was inundated with reports of multi-billion-dollar accounting frauds at other major publicly traded corporations in the United States. We learned that Worldcom had misreported $3 billion in expenses, a figure which has since doubled to more than $7 billion.”