Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The Audit Committee is established by and among the Board of Directors (the Board) for the primary
purpose of assisting the Board in:
Overseeing the integrity of the Companys financial statements and the Companys accounting and
financial reporting processes and financial statement audits;
Overseeing the Companys compliance with legal and regulatory requirements;
Overseeing the independent auditors or other registered public accounting firms qualifications
and independence;
Overseeing the performance of the Companys independent auditor and internal audit function;
Overseeing the Companys systems of disclosure controls and procedures, internal control over
financial reporting, and compliance with ethical standards adopted by the Company.
The management of the Company is responsible for the preparation, presentation and integrity of the
Companys financial statements and for the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting.
Management and the internal auditing department are responsible for maintaining appropriate
accounting and financial reporting principles and policies and internal controls and procedures that
provide for compliance with accounting standards and applicable laws and regulations. The independent
auditors are responsible for planning and carrying out a proper audit of the Companys annual financial
statements and of the Companys internal control over financial reporting, reviews of the Companys
quarterly financial statements prior to the filing of each quarterly report on Form 10-Q, and other
procedures. In fulfilling their responsibilities hereunder, it is recognized that members of the Audit
Committee are not full-time employees of the Company and are not, and do not represent themselves
to be, performing the functions of auditors or accountants. As such, it is not the duty or responsibility of
the Audit Committee or its members to conduct field work or other types of auditing or accounting
reviews or procedures or to set auditor independence standards.
The Audit Committee shall have the resources and authority to conduct investigations into any matters
within its scope of responsibility and obtain advice and assistance from outside legal, accounting, or
other advisors, as necessary, to perform its duties and responsibilities.
In carrying out its duties and responsibilities, the Audit Committee shall also have the authority to meet
with and seek any information it requires from employees, officers, directors, or external parties.
The Company will provide appropriate funding, as determined by the Audit Committee, for
compensation to the independent auditor, any other registered public accounting firm engaged for the
purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or to perform audit, review or attestation services for
the Company and any advisers that the Audit Committee chooses to engage and for payment of
ordinary administrative expenses of the Audit Committee that are necessary or appropriate in carrying
out its duties.
The Audit Committee will primarily fulfill its responsibilities by carrying out the activities enumerated in
Section III of this charter.
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