SEC Promotes Coulson to Chief Accountant

Edmund Coulson, deputy chief accountant at the Securities and Exchange Commission for five years, was promoted to chief accountant. He succeeds A. Clarence Sampson, who has retired.

The post is considered a powerful one in the accounting profession. SEC bulletins set the disclosure standards for all publicly traded corporations.

Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, had urged in a letter to SEC Chairman David S. Ruder that Frederick Wolf be appointed. Wolf is assistant comptroller general at the General Accounting Office, the congressional watchdog agency.

Coulson has worked for the SEC since 1975. He is a 1970 graduate of the University of Maryland.

“We have selected the individual who combines the highest level of technical expertise in SEC accounting and auditing issues and with long experience at the commission,” Ruder said.

“He has been in the forefront of developing an aggressive commission posture concerning the responsibility of the accounting profession to ensure the integrity and credibility of the financial disclosure system,” said Ruder, who added that he conducted a nationwide search to fill the chief accountant’s slot before selecting Coulson.