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Corporate Accountabilty Reform

"My Administration pressed for greater corporate integrity. A united Congress has written it into law. And today I sign the most far-reaching reforms of American business practices since the time of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This new law sends very clear messages that all concerned must heed. This law says to every dishonest corporate leader: you will be exposed and punished; the era of low standards and false profits is over; [and] no boardroom in America is above or beyond the law." - President George W. Bush, July 30, 2002

THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Greater Corporate Accountability

  • President Bush signed the most sweeping corporate accountability reforms since Franklin Roosevelt.
  • The President created the Corporate Fraud Task Force to investigate and prosecute corporate fraud. Federal prosecutors have filed more than 400 corporate fraud cases, charged over 900 defendants, including more than 60 corporate CEOs and company presidents, with a crime involving corporate fraud, and secured convictions or guilty pleas against more than 500 of these defendants.
  • The Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement division has filed almost 800 enforcement actions for violations of the Federal securities laws and sought to bar a record number of directors and officers from serving in leadership capacities of public companies.
  • The SEC has also responded swiftly to the mutual fund abuses that came to light last year. The SEC filed 41 enforcement actions related to the abuse, obtaining close to $1 billion in penalties, which will be returned to investors.

Protecting Consumer Privacy

  • In order to combat the problem of identity theft, one of the fastest growing financial crimes, President Bush signed the Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act, which dramatically strengthens the fight against identity theft and fraud. The law also prescribes prison sentences for those who use identity theft to commit other crimes, including terrorism.
  • President Bush helped launch the national "Do Not Call" Registry. More than 62 million phone numbers have been registered.
  • Millions of America’s consumers, businesses, and families have been provided legal protection against unsolicited commercial e-mail through the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (CAN-SPAM Act).