Sarbanes-Oxley spending seen at $6 billion in 2007

NEW YORK, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Corporate spending to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley accounting legislation is likely to hold steady at $6 billion in 2007 as smaller companies are required to comply with some sections of the law for the first time, a survey from AMR Research showed on Thursday.

Sarbanes-Oxley, passed in 2002 in the wake of corporate accounting scandals at Enron and WorldCom, included dozens of reforms, including a requirement for top executives to sign off on financial statements. But the law has come under harsh criticism from companies for its internal control rules which require costly compliance work and have been blamed for ratcheting up audit fees.

U.S. regulators have proposed streamlining some areas of the law to reduce costs this year, but, according to the survey, companies are not likely to see big savings from the changes.

"Projections were that this would be a long-term systemic change, so it's not as if you spend and then you're done," said John Hagerty, vice president and research fellow at AMR, which has been tracking Sarbanes-Oxley spending since 2003.

After spiking in the first few years of compliance, Sarbanes-Oxley spending has stabilized at about $6 billion since 2005, AMR said.

Hagerty said he had expected the Sarbanes-Oxley revisions to lower spending this year, but suggested the spending has held steady because small companies -- with market capitalizations below $75 million -- will have to comply with some areas of the law for the first time this year.

Sarbanes-Oxley spending will likely account for about 20 percent of overall compliance, governance, and risk management spending, which is projected to rise 8.5 percent from 2006 to $29.9 billion, AMR said.