SEC Looks to Ease Some Disclosures, Tighten Accounting Estimates

The Securities and Exchange Commission wants to eliminate some repetitive financial disclosure requirements and bolster its rules for reporting accounting estimates.

The commission released the proposed amendments to Regulation S-K Thursday and issued guidance for performance metrics included in a company’s management discussion and analysis. The amendments represent the commission’s latest batch of changes intended to modernize and simplify its non-financial reporting rules.

Under the proposal, companies would:

• No longer be required to report five years of financial data, two years of quarterly financial data, or a table listing contractual obligations.
• State an objective for their management discussion and analysis ...