The Act is a lengthy and detailed piece of securities legislation, but its major provisions involve: (1) the creation of a new quasi-governmental agency to oversee the public accounting profession, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board; (2) restrictions on the types of consulting services that accounting firms can provide to audit clients; (3) greater responsibility for audit committees in overseeing the financial reporting process; (4) requiring the chief executive officer (CEO) and the chief financial officer (CFO) to certify the accuracy of their company’s financial statements; (5) requiring management to report on the effectiveness of the company’s internal controls over financial reporting, which must be audited by the same accounting firm that audits the financial statements; and (6) substantial increases in civil and criminal penalties related to securities fraud, including fraudulent financial reporting.