Lloyd Bentsen: “the underlying bill is not perfect, and I do not think the substitute is necessarily perfect, but there are certain…”

“the underlying bill is not perfect, and I do not think the substitute is necessarily perfect, but there are certain pieces of the substitute that I think would make the underlying bill better. Number one, the substitute is stronger on the issue of scope of services for auditing firms. Originally, I thought the gentleman from New York (Mr. LaFalce) went too far in the committee. The language he has adopted would bolster the language that the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Watt) and I put in the bill that was accepted by the chairman, and I think that is very good in ensuring that the SEC is on the job and doing what it is supposed to do. Second of all, as the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) pointed out, the substitute is much stronger on giving authority to the SEC to remove officers and directors who engage in misconduct in public companies, and I think that needs to be done. I have some concerns, as the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Baker) pointed out, about the analyst provisions. I think they go too far. But I think what the gentleman from New York (Mr. LaFalce) has put together in the substitute would add greatly to where we want this bill to go when it finally gets to the President's desk. For those reasons, I think I will support the substitute.”