when the act was passed in 1977 it received substantial backing from american businesses because they could not compete fairly in overseas markets where bribery was accepted the fcpa s anti bribery regime along with the adoption of treaties like the organisation for economic co operation and development s oecd which required signatory countries to outlaw all financial crime has helped to level the playing field abroad for u s businesses 2
anti bribery provisionsthe act prohibits bribery of foreign officials and intends to deter corruption and abuses of power worldwide the fcpa contains policies for governing the actions of publicly traded companies their directors officers shareholders agents and employees this includes working through third parties such as consultants and partners in a joint venture jv with the company meaning that the use of proxies to execute a bribe will not shield the company or individual from culpability 3books records and internal control provisionsthis section of the act outlines the accounting transparency guidelines that are meant to operate in tandem with the anti bribery provisions the fcpa requires companies whose securities are listed in the u s to meet its accounting provisions which cite ways of recording assets that make it difficult to mask corrupt payments 4corporations covered by the act also must devise and maintain internal controls to assure regulators that their business transactions are accounted for properly 1violating the foreign corrupt practices actthe securities and exchange commission sec and the department of justice doj are jointly responsible for enforcing the foreign corrupt practices act for its part the sec created a special unit within its enforcement division to focus on matters that fall under the auspices of the fcpa violators of the act can face substantial sanctions and penalties and both criminal and civil actions may be charged punishments include fines as much as twice the amount of the benefit expected to be received from the bribery corporate entities found guilty of breaching the act may be forced to accept the oversight of an independent auditor to ensure future compliance individuals involved in breaking this law can face imprisonment for as many as five years 156sec sample rulings in the fcpathe sec publishes current violations of the act along with its enforcement actions on the sec website in press release format the agency also redacts a summary list organized by calendar year of individuals and firms that violated the tenets of the act for example in 2019 some of the sec s rulings included actions against 7