In the PwC Management Barometer, which polled senior executives of U.S.-based multinational companies, 56 percent of those surveyed said their company does not track and report internally on the costs of Sarbanes-Oxley and other compliance programs. Forty-one percent do track such costs.

"Given the early outcry about Sarbanes-Oxley's added costs, it's surprising that most companies do not document and track this expense," said Dan DiFilippo, a PwC partner and governance practice leader. "However, many companies have only recently begun to understand the types of costs and value associated with compliance efforts. We expect more aggressive monitoring as companies examine the effectiveness of their compliance approach."

In addition, 79 percent of those surveyed acknowledged that their company needs to make improvements in order to comply with Section 404 of Sarbanes-Oxley, which requires companies to file a management assertion and auditor attestation on the effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting. Among areas needing remediation: 

55% - Financial processes 
48% - Computer controls
37% - Internal audit effectiveness
35% - Security controls
26% - Audit committee oversight
24% - Fraud programs

Looking ahead, 93 percent of executives expect their company to launch process improvement initiatives to streamline future Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, including financial reporting, risk identification and assessment, IT security strategy and implementation, internal audit, and compliance management.

"Companies recognize the need to make improvements in order to comply with the requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley," said DiFilippo. "When executives are confident that they are in compliance, many will want to find ways to streamline business processes and make future compliance less difficult."