US Audit Board Braces for Agenda Shake-Up in Trump’s Second Term

The pending political transition in Washington is poised to put the US audit watchdog and its agenda in limbo, scuttling efforts to rewrite its outdated rulebook and upending the regulator’s priorities.

Auditors anticipate the shift from Democrats to Republicans will result in a regulator that’s more open to industry concerns and input. Investors, however, are bracing for what could be a sharp slowdown in the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s activity, from disciplining wayward auditors to routine checks of their work.

“The PCAOB is most effective when it is active,” said Robert Pawlewicz, an accounting professor at the University of ...