To amend the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to promote transparency by permitting the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to allow its disciplinary proceedings to be open to the public, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Jack Reed
D-RI | Primary Sponsor
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Grassley) introduced the following …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The PCAOB Enforcement Transparency Act of 2025 amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to make disciplinary proceedings of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) open to the public by default. Currently, these proceedings can be conducted behind closed doors; this bill reverses that default, requiring transparency unless the Board specifically decides otherwise. It also allows the PCAOB to publish sanctions immediately rather than waiting for any appeals or stays to be resolved.
Who Benefits and How
Investors and the general public benefit from greater transparency into how accounting firms and auditors are being held accountable. Public access to disciplinary hearings means investors can make more informed decisions about which accounting firms to trust with their audits. Whistleblowers and advocates for corporate accountability also benefit, as public proceedings make it harder for misconduct to be quietly resolved without public scrutiny.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The PCAOB must now conduct its enforcement proceedings in public by default, which may require procedural changes and could expose sensitive deliberations. Accounting firms and auditors under investigation face greater reputational risk, as their disciplinary proceedings and any sanctions will be visible to clients, competitors, and the public immediately rather than after appeals are exhausted.
Key Provisions
- Makes PCAOB disciplinary hearings open to the public by default, with the Board retaining discretion to close proceedings in specific cases
- Removes the requirement to wait for stays on sanctions to be lifted before publishing determinations
- Gives the Board authority to close proceedings upon its own motion or after considering a party's motion
- Applies to all PCAOB enforcement actions against registered accounting firms and associated persons
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
The bill aims to enhance transparency in disciplinary proceedings of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) by allowing public access, while also addressing publication and notification requirements for sanctions.
Policy Domains
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
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