AeA Praises House for Passage of Stock Option Accounting Reform Act

Washington – 7/20/2004 – AeA, the nation’s largest high-tech trade organization, today praised the U.S. House of Representatives for the passage of H.R. 3574, the Stock Option Accounting Reform Act, which received strong bipartisan support. The bill, introduced by Rep. Richard Baker (R-LA) passed the House by a vote of 312-111.

“Today’s House action on stock options is a wake-up call for the US Senate,” said John Palafoutas, AeA’s Senior Vice President for Domestic Policy. “The overwhelming bipartisan vote shows that the House understands the serious economic implications of expensing options and the negative impact expensing will have on American workers who are granted stock options by their companies.

“The FASB rule was a solution in search of a problem. And this rule would have grave consequences on a crucial incentive for high-tech companies and their workers.

“We believe that the Senate Banking Committee should conduct immediate hearings on this bill. This is not a philosophical issue but a very practical problem facing the US economy. FASB has refused to look at the economic implications of expensing; Congress has the ultimate responsibility to examine the impact the FASB standard will have on American business, the American economy, and the American worker.”

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Advancing the business of technology, AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association) is the nation's largest high-tech trade association. AeA represents more than 3,000 companies with 1.8 million employees. These 3000+ companies span the high-technology spectrum, from software, semiconductors, medical devices and computers to Internet technology, advanced electronics and telecommunications systems and services. With 17 regional U.S. councils and offices in Brussels and Beijing, AeA offers a unique global policy grassroots capability and a wide portfolio of valuable business services and products for the high-tech industry. AeA has been representing the voice of the U.S. technology community since 1943.

This page was last updated on 07/20/04.