1995 - FEBRUARY 2002 : (CHUCK SCHUMER ACCEPTS $386,000 FROM THE “ACCOUNTING INDUSTRY” IN THIS PERIOD-—— See ACCOUNTING FIRM ARTHUR ANDERSEN) Schumer has taken $386,000 from the accounting industry since 1995, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
—————”Chuck Had Gone To Bat for Backer (ENRON),” New York Daily News ^ | 2/04/02 | KENNETH R. BAZINET
2000 : (SEC CHAIRMAN ARTHUR LEVITT PROPOSES AN SEC RULE THAT WOULD PREVENT CONFLICT OF INTEREST BY BARRING ACCOUNTANTS FROM ALSO ACTING AS CONSULTANTS; THE ACCOUNTING INDUSTRY GETS 46 CONGRESSMEN TO PRESSURE LEVITT TO BACK OFF — AMONG THEM : CHUCK SCHUMER, R TORRICELLI—— See ACCOUNTING FIRM ARTHUR ANDERSEN {See ENRON}) In 2000, Arthur Levitt, who was then chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, spotted a potential conflict of interest brewing in the accounting industry. The “Big Five” accounting firms (Arthur Andersen, Deloitte & Touche, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers) had managed to increase their income by offering consulting services to the same companies they audited. Levitt, concerned that the firms would compromise their credibility when they had to audit their own services, proposed an SEC rule that would bar accountants from also acting as consultants. But when the accounting industry heard about the rule, Levitt became the target of what he later called an “intensive and venal lobbying campaign.” The accounting industry got 46 members of Congress to call or write personal letters to Levitt questioning the proposed rule. Some lawmakers reportedly threatened to withdraw funding from the SEC. Withering under the assault, the SEC eventually curtailed Levitt’s proposal.
Among the Senators who wrote such letters to Levitt include:
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.); and Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.). Schumer is the top recipient of money from the industry, taking in more than $57,000. -————Accounting Industry ~ written by Open Secrets.org