Enron, Andersen Testify Before Congress

Posted by accountingweb on Dec 11 2001 164 printer friendly

Congress has scheduled its first hearing into the Enron situation and expects to hear testimony from Big Five firm Andersen, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Enron.

Andersen was the auditor for the energy company and has been criticized for its handling of the audit. Joe Berardino, Andersen chief executive, will testify before the House Financial Services Committee in the Enron matter on Wednesday.

SEC Chairman Harvey Pitt has indicated he will not appear before the committee at this time, but SEC Chief Accountant Robert Herdman will testify. Although no subpoenas have been issued by the committee, it is anticipated that Enron CEO Kenneth Lay may testify as well.

Meanwhile, the House Energy and Commerce Committee is continuing its investigation into the Enron affair and has requested that the SEC turn over certain Enron files dating back to 1997.

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