White House Budget Proposes to Merge PCAOB into SEC

The proposed budget released by the Trump Administration proposes to consolidate the PCAOB’s authorities, responsibilities, and funding streams into the SEC beginning in 2022. The White House estimates that eliminating the audit watchdog would save roughly $580 million over nine years, Bloomberg reports. The PCAOB has faced several challenges and leadership changes in the last several years, including a scandal over leaked confidential inspection information which left at least one staff member facing a prison sentence. The budget proposal would require an amendment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which established the PCAOB after several accounting scandals. According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump’s budget proposal is unlikely to become law since it needs bipartisan support in the Senate and might not gather enough support in the House.