Maurice Hinchey: “beginning in 1995, the leadership of this Congress was successful in the following deregulatory efforts. They shielded…”

“beginning in 1995, the leadership of this Congress was successful in the following deregulatory efforts. They shielded accountants and corporations from shareholder lawsuits. They killed new Securities and Exchange Commission proposals to increase standards to ensure that auditors are independent and objective in certifying corporate numbers. They cut the Securities and Exchange Commission budget, essentially limiting their ability to protect investors from security scam artists. They passed deregulation of energy derivatives, which enabled Enron to run wild, and they opposed President Clinton's efforts to participate in international efforts to check offshore tax havens. In other words, they created the climate and increased the incentives to commit the kind of corporate fraud that has robbed millions of Americans of their pensions and financial security. This bill corrects some of those, let me call them, mistakes. But it does not do all that needs to be done. It does not deal with the issue of corrupt manipulation of stock options. It does not deal with the problem of fraudulent IPOs. Yes, this bill is a good bill as far as it goes. It is certainly better than that cream puff legislation that was out here last April or the fraudulent piece that came out here last week.”