SEC Extends Deadline for Compliance with Financial Reporting Requirements, February 2004

Washington, DC, February 26, 2004 - The SEC recently extended the deadline for mutual funds to comply with the technical amendments to its rules under the Investment Company Act of 1940 relating to the establishment and maintenance of internal control over financial reporting.

Background
Amendments to the Investment Company Act were adopted last year as part of the SEC's rulemaking initiative to implement Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 for registered management investment companies. Although compliance with the amendments was originally scheduled to occur for fiscal years beginning on or after June 15, 2004, the SEC has decided to extend the compliance date for fiscal years ending on or after November 15, 2004.

Funds must now comply with the amended portion of Rule 30a-3(3) under the Investment Company Act, which requires each fund (other than a small business investment company) to maintain internal control over financial reporting, for fiscal years ending on or after November 15, 2004. Funds must also comply with the amended portions of the certification requirements contained in Form N-CSR, which require the fund's certifying officers to:

state that they are responsible for establishing and maintaining internal control over financial reporting;
state that they have designed such internal control over financial reporting, or supervised the creation of internal controls over financial reporting, and
provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principals, beginning with the first annual report filed on Form N-CSR for a fiscal year ending on or after November 15, 2004.

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