Sarbanes-oxley act of 2002

12 
Sec. 103 
SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002 
(d) P
ERIODIC
R
EPORTS
.—Each registered public accounting firm 
shall submit an annual report to the Board, and may be required 
to report more frequently, as necessary to update the information 
contained in its application for registration under this section, and 
to provide to the Board such additional information as the Board 
or the Commission may specify, in accordance with subsection 
(b)(2). 
(e) P
UBLIC
A
VAILABILITY
.—Registration applications and an-
nual reports required by this subsection, or such portions of such 
applications or reports as may be designated under rules of the 
Board, shall be made available for public inspection, subject to 
rules of the Board or the Commission, and to applicable laws relat-
ing to the confidentiality of proprietary, personal, or other informa-
tion contained in such applications or reports, provided that, in all 
events, the Board shall protect from public disclosure information 
reasonably identified by the subject accounting firm as proprietary 
information. 
(f) R
EGISTRATION AND
A
NNUAL
F
EES
.—The Board shall assess 
and collect a registration fee and an annual fee from each reg-
istered public accounting firm, in amounts that are sufficient to re-
cover the costs of processing and reviewing applications and annual 
reports. 
SEC. 103. ø15 U.S.C. 7213¿ AUDITING, QUALITY CONTROL, AND INDE-
PENDENCE STANDARDS AND RULES. 
(a) A
UDITING
, Q
UALITY
C
ONTROL
, 
AND
E
THICS
S
TANDARDS
.— 
(1) I
N GENERAL
.—The Board shall, by rule, establish, in-
cluding, to the extent it determines appropriate, through adop-
tion of standards proposed by 1 or more professional groups of 
accountants designated pursuant to paragraph (3)(A) or advi-
sory groups convened pursuant to paragraph (4), and amend or 
otherwise modify or alter, such auditing and related attesta-
tion standards, such quality control standards, such ethics 
standards, and such independence standards to be used by reg-
istered public accounting firms in the preparation and issuance 
of audit reports, as required by this Act or the rules of the 
Commission, or as may be necessary or appropriate in the pub-
lic interest or for the protection of investors. 
(2) R
ULE REQUIREMENTS
.—In carrying out paragraph (1), 
the Board— 
(A) shall include in the auditing standards that it 
adopts, requirements that each registered public account-
ing firm shall— 
(i) prepare, and maintain for a period of not less 
than 7 years, audit work papers, and other informa-
tion related to any audit report, in sufficient detail to 
support the conclusions reached in such report; 
(ii) provide a concurring or second partner review 
and approval of such audit report (and other related 
information), and concurring approval in its issuance, 
by a qualified person (as prescribed by the Board) as-
sociated with the public accounting firm, other than 
the person in charge of the audit, or by an inde-
pendent reviewer (as prescribed by the Board); and 
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December 21, 2020 
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As Amended Through P.L. 116-222, Enacted December 18, 2020

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