New guidance released to aid smaller public companies in implementing internal control systems.

New internal control guidance for smaller public companies has been issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). The AICPA is a member of COSO, a voluntary private-sector organization dedicated to improving the quality of financial reporting through business ethics, effective internal controls and corporate governance.

The guidance, released at a July 11 Web cast, is intended to assist smaller public companies to implement more effective internal control systems and ultimately to result in more proficient compliance with the Section 404 internal control reporting requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

COSO's guidance, Internal Control over Financial Reporting--Guidance for Smaller Public Companies, offers smaller public companies previously unavailable, but much needed, direction about how to design and implement cost-effective internal financial controls. Copies of Internal...