The SEC on Thursday released its draft Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2010–2015, which includes, among other goals, a continued commitment “to promote the establishment of high-quality accounting standards by independent standard setters” and support for “a single set of high-quality global accounting standards.”
The draft Strategic Plan is a statement of the SEC’s mission, vision, values, strategic goals, planned initiatives and performance metrics.
The Commission’s plan outlines the following major strategic goals:
- Foster and enforce compliance with the federal securities laws.
- Establish an effective regulatory environment.
- Facilitate access to the information investors need to make informed investment decisions.
- Enhance the Commission’s performance through effective alignment and management of human, information and financial capital.
To further its goal of promoting high-quality accounting standards, the SEC says it will:
- Strengthen and support FASB’s independence and maintain the focus of financial reporting on the needs of investors, consistent with the recommendations set forth by the SEC Advisory Committee on Improvements to Financial Reporting;
- Support FASB’s efforts to improve financial reporting, including recent standard-setting initiatives such as off-balance-sheet accounting and accounting for financial instruments; and
- Promote high-quality financial reporting worldwide through, among other things, support for a single set of high-quality global accounting standards and promotion of the ongoing convergence initiatives between the FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board.
To foster high-quality audits, the SEC says it will work closely with the PCAOB on the promulgation and interpretation of auditing standards to address current issues in the capital markets.
Comments on the SEC’s draft Strategic Plan are due Nov. 16. Comments may be sent via e-mail to strategicplan@sec.gov or via regular mail to Kenneth A. Johnson, Management and Program Analyst, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549-2521.
