US Audit Leader Defends Watchdog Under Threat From Congress

The head of the US audit regulator defended her agency’s watchdog role as Congress threatens to cut off its funding and reassign its duties to the SEC.

Congress created the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board more than 20 years ago to serve as a check on auditors responsible for vetting the corporate accounting of companies now worth trillions of dollars. That model of an independent watchdog, working outside of government, still serves investors today, Erica Williams, who chairs the non-profit board, told Bloomberg Tax in an interview Thursday.

“Investors are better protected today because of the PCAOB. We have not ...