The Maryland Democrat served five terms in the U.S. Senate, a 30-year tenure in which he was chairman of the Senate Banking Committee when it responded to a rash of accounting scandals. He didn’t seek a sixth term and retired on Jan. 3, 2007.
A number of small banks have disclosed material weaknesses in loan-loss accounting and other procedures. Reasons vary, but a common thread appears to be that accounting firms are facing pressure to beef up their scrutiny of internal controls in financial services.
