The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, signed into law last week, permanently exempts smaller public companies (those with a public float below $75 million) from the auditor attestation requirement of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The Act also directs the SEC to conduct a study to determine how the burdens of compliance with Section 404(b) can be reduced for other public companies.