纽约证券交易所批准加强公司治理责任的新措施
NYSE Approves Measures to Strengthen Corporate Accountability
Major Steps Aimed at Building
Investor Confidence
恢复投资者信心的主要步骤
NEW YORK, Aug. 1, 2002 – The
New York Stock Exchange's board of directors today approved significant changes
in its listing standards aimed at helping to restore investor confidence by
empowering and ensuring the independence of directors and strengthening corporate-governance
practices.
纽约，2002年8月1日－纽约证券交易所董事会今天批准了该所有关上市规则的重大修订。这一修订旨在通过强化与确保董事的独立性和加强公司治理来恢复投资者信心。
"American investors have
had their faith in corporate America badly shaken in recent months," said
NYSE Chairman and CEO Dick Grasso. "Their confidence and participation
are essential to the strength of our markets and economy. Our board had 85 million
good reasons – each and every individual investor in the United States – as
the basis to take strong action today."
“美国投资者对美国公司的信心在过去几个月里遭到了严重的打击。”纽约证券交易所董事长兼首席执行官迪克·格拉索说。“他们的信心与参与对强化我们的市场和经济十分重要。我们的董事会具有8500万种好的理由支持我们采取今天这样强有力的行动――每一个美国投资者个人就是一个好的理由。”
The NYSE board adopted the final recommendations of its Corporate Accountability and Listing Standards (CALS) committee following a two-month comment period in which more than 300 comment letters were received. The Exchange will promptly submit a rule filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission for review.
纽约证券交易所董事会今天采纳了其所属公司义务与上市标准委员会（CALS）的最终建议。该建议是在经过了两个月的评审期后提交董事会的。在评审期中，共收到了超过300份评论函。交易所将立即向证券与交易委员会提交一份上市规则备审。
Putting Investors First
把投资者放在首位
"This marks the culmination of an intensive six months in which we have sought to translate broad and extensive public input into specific measures that address investor concerns," said Mr. Levin, CEO (retired) of AOL TimeWarner Inc. "It is vital to immediately communicate to the public through our actions that we're absolutely committed to rooting out bad practices and bad people, and putting in place a system of governance that clearly puts investor interests first."
“我们已将广泛的公众要求转化为代表投资者利益的具体措施，这标志着6个月的慎密工作取得了决定性成果。”AOL时代华纳公司前首席执行官列文先生说，“非常重要的一点是通过我们的行动迅速向公众说明，我们绝对忠实地设法排除不良行为和不良分子，并且引入一套能够明确地把投资者利益放在首位的治理体系。”
"These new standards will have a lasting impact on the culture of corporate America, and will help restore investor confidence," said Mr. McCall, Comptroller of the State of New York and Sole Trustee, Common Retirement Fund of the State of New York. "The reforms we are adopting today are a tremendous step forward towards greater accountability and improved corporate governance."
“这些新的标准将对美国公司文化产生持续的影响，并有助于恢复投资者信心。”纽约州审计官、纽约州公共退休基金独立受托人麦科尔先生说，“我们今天采取的行动是朝着更重大的责任和更完善的公司治理迈出的重要一步。”
"Broad public participation and integrity remain at the core of our corporate system, driving our economic growth," said Leon E. Panetta, director of the Panetta Institute for Public Policy. "With our actions today, the NYSE aims to reassure investors that those running our nation's companies share those core values."
“广泛的公众参与和忠诚仍然是我们治理体系的核心，并驱动着经济的增长。”帕纳特公共政策协会董事里昂·E·帕纳特说，“通过今天的行动，纽约证券交易所将向投资者保证，那些使美国公司健康运行的人将得以分享其核心价值。”
对有效性和敏感性方案必备条件的评论
Following the June 6 release of the initial CALS report, the CALS recommendations garnered strong support from President Bush, SEC Chairman Harvey Pitt, members of Congress, CEOs of listed companies, institutional investors, state pension funds, organizations such as the Business Roundtable and the Council of Institutional Investors, representatives of the financial-services industry, individual investors, and other Exchange constituents. In addition to many meetings, telephone calls and e-mails, the NYSE received more than 300 comment letters, and will release a synopsis of the comments. Some of these comments, as well as legislative developments and further deliberations of the CALS, resulted in several clarifications and modifications of the original recommendations. (A list is attached.)
6月6日公司责任与上市标准委员会（CALS）发布的第一份报告中所提出的建议得到了布什总统、证券与交易委员会主席哈维·皮特、国会议员、上市公司首席执行官们、机构投资者、州养老基金会和商业圆桌、机构投资理事会等组织、金融服务业代表、个人投资者及其他证券交易机构的强烈支持。除一系列会议、电话和电子邮件外，纽约证券交易所还收到了300多封评论信。交易所将对这些评论信的大纲予以公布。部分意见及其法律扩展，连同CALS所作的推敲，使原始建议中的部分内容得以澄清或完善。（见附表）
……
Selected Final Recommendations of NYSE Corporate Accountability and Listing Standards Committee
Comparison with Current Rules
摘自纽约证券交易所公司责任与上市标准委员会
最终建议与现行规则之间的比较
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Final Recommendation 最终建议 |
Current Rule(s) 现行规则 |
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Independent directors must comprise a majority of a board. Companies must
have a nominating committee, compensation committee (or committees of
the company's own denomination with the same responsibilities) and an
audit committee, each comprised solely of independent directors. Controlled
companies are exempt but must have a minimum three-person audit committee
composed entirely of independent directors. 独立董事应当在董事会中占多数。公司必须有聘任委员会、报酬委员会（或具有相同职责而由公司自己命名的委员会）和审计委员会。三个委员会均由独立董事组成。 特定企业可以不受此规定约束，但也至少要有一个完全由独立董事组成的三人审计委员会。 |
Listed companies must have a minimum three-person audit committee composed
solely of independent directors. No requirement for establishment or composition
of nominating or compensation committees. 上市公司必须至少有一个完全由独立董事组成的三人审计委员会。没有对聘任委员会和报酬委员会的设立及其组成的规定。 |
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Non-management directors must meet without management in regular executive
sessions. 非管理层董事必须召开没有管理层参加的定期行政会议。 |
No such requirement. 无此类规定。 |
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For a director to be deemed "independent," the board must affirmatively
determine the director has no material relationship with the listed company
(either directly or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization
that has a relationship with the company). 对某董事的“独立性”进行认定时，董事会必须确认该董事与上市公司不存在重大关联（包括直接或间接地作为公司的合伙人、股东或在关联公司担任管理者）。 |
Existing definition precludes any relationship with the company that may
interfere with the exercise of director's independence from management
and the company. 现行定义排除董事与公司和公司管理层之间存在的可能干扰其独立行使职权的任何关联。 |
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Independence also requires a five-year "cooling-off" period for
former employees of the listed company, or of its independent auditor;
for former employees of any company whose compensation committee includes
an officer of the listed company; and for immediate family members of
the above. 独立性还要求上市公司的前雇员、独立审计师和报酬委员会的成员及其直系亲属担任公司独立董事时，应当具有5年“冷却期”。 |
Cooling-off period is three years and references only former employees
of the company. Board of directors can make an exception for one former
officer, provided the reason is explained in the next proxy statement.
“冷却期”为三年，并仅针对公司前雇员。若该雇员在下期股东委托书中能够说明理由，则董事会可以免除其担任独立董事的“冷却期”。 |
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Every listed company must have an internal audit function. 每个上市公司都必须设立一个内部审计部。 |
No current requirement. 无现行规定。 |
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Director's compensation must be the sole remuneration from the listed company
for audit-committee members. 审计委员会成员在上市公司所得的唯一报酬是董事酬金。 |
No current requirement. 无现行规定。 |
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Listed companies must adopt a code of business conduct and ethics, and
must promptly disclose any waivers of the code for directors or executive
officers. 上市公司必须采用一套商业行为与道德的规范，并对公司董事或执行官员违反该规范的行为进行迅速披露。 |
No current requirements. 无现行规定。 |
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Shareholders must be given the opportunity to vote on all stock-option
plans, except employment-inducement options, option plans acquired through
mergers and tax-qualified plans such as ESOPs and 401(k)s. Brokers
may vote customer shares on proposals for such plans only pursuant to
customer instructions. 必须向公司股东提供所有股票分配方案的投票机会，除非该方案为员工激励方案、并购股权方案和诸如员工持股计划和401（k）条款中规定的税务资格方案。经纪人只有在客户授权的情况下代表客户进行投票。 |
Shareholder approval required of stock-option plans in which officers or
directors may participate, but broad-based plans and one-time employment
inducements are exempt. Brokers can vote customer shares without instructions
as long as the proposal is not contested and the proposal does not cover
more than 5 percent of outstanding stock. 股东对涉及公司管理人员和董事的股票构成方案进行批准，但其他更广泛的股权激励方案和一次性员工激励计划可免除此规定。只要不出现争议或代表不超过5%的优先股，经纪人代表股东投票表决可不经股东授权。 |
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Listed companies must publish codes of business conduct and ethics, and
key committee charters. Waivers for directors or executive officers must
be promptly disclosed. 上市公司必须公布商业行为与道德规范和重要的委员会章程，董事或执行官员违规行为应迅速披露。 |
No current requirements. 无现行规定。 |
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Listed foreign private issuers must
disclose any significant ways in which their corporate-governance practices
differ from NYSE rules. 已上市的境外私营发行人必须披露其公司治理实务中与纽约证券交易所规则显著不同之处。 |
No current requirements. 无现行规定。 |
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Each listed-company's CEO must certify annually that he or she is not aware
of any violation by the company of NYSE corporate-governance standards.
每一个上市公司的首席执行官必须每年确认未发现违反纽约证券交易所公司治理标准的情况。 |
No current requirements. 无现行规定。 |
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The NYSE may issue a public reprimand letter for violation of a corporate-governance
standard, in addition to the existing penalty of delisting. 除维持现行的摘牌处罚外，纽约证券交易所应当对违反公司治理标准的情况发布公开的谴责信。 |
No current provision for a public reprimand. 无现行的公开惩戒条款。 |
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The NYSE urges every listed company to establish an orientation program
for new board members. 纽约证券交易所敦促每一个上市公司建立新的董事指引。 |
No such recommendation has been made previously. 此前未出现过此建议。 |
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In conjunction with leading authorities in corporate governance, the NYSE
will develop a Directors Institute. 纽约证券交易所将联合其他公司治理的权威机构建立董事研究会。 |
NYSE has generally supported educational initiatives, but this will be
the first formalized program designed for directors. 尽管纽约证券交易所一贯支持教育动议，但这是首次正式向董事提供培训项目。 |
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