Elimination of PCAOB can’t remain in budget bill, Senate official rules

The Senate parliamentarian’s office ruled that a provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to defund the PCAOB and transfer its activities to the SEC isn’t permissible.

The budget reconciliation process requires only a simple majority vote in both the House and Senate. The House passed the bill 215-214 on May 22 and moved it to the Senate, where its parliamentarian determines if policy provisions like the PCAOB plan qualify for the budget reconciliation process. The Senate parliamentarian ruled Thursday that the PCAOB provision doesn’t qualify because it proposes a policy change rather than a budget change, making it subject to the Byrd rule that would require 60 votes to pass in the 100-member Senate.

AICPA leadership monitored the debate about the PCAOB’s future, showing general support for the role of the auditor in assuring public trust regardless of how supporting regulatory agencies are structured. In a statement dated April 28, AICPA President and CEO Mark Koziel, CPA, CGMA, said the organization supports “healthy oversight of accounting firms that audit listed companies” and is “committed to supporting the drivers of audit quality needed to keep the investing public safe and provide confidence in our capital markets.”

— To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Bryan Strickland at Bryan.Strickland@aicpa-cima.com.