Section 404(a) of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act requires the management of a public company to issue a report on internal control over financial reporting (ICOFR) as of the end of the company’s fiscal year. Many companies have reported that their ICOFR was operating effectively, while others have reported that such controls were not effective in design or operation.

1. Visit the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov) and search for the Form 10-K filing for Organic Alliance Inc. for fiscal year ended December 31, 2009.
2. Locate Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting to answer the following questions:
     a. Who is responsible for establishing and implementing effective internal controls?
     b. What type of internal controls is the report addressing?
     c. What framework did management use to evaluate its internal control?
     d. What was management’s conclusion about the operating effectiveness of internal control?
     e. What information is provided to help readers understand why management arrived at that conclusion?
     f. What changes, if any, has management made to improve internal controls?
3. Locate the report of the independent registered public accounting firm. What information does the audit firm provide about its evaluation of internal controls over financial reporting?