marketwatch HOTLINE (TT May04 p10-14)

ACT proposes new ratings code
The credit rating agencies (CRAs) have been finding themselves the subject of calls for regulation and improved oversight of their industry, particularly over the past two years. Given the perceived failures of the CRAs to predict certain significant corporate failures, such as Enron and WorldCom, it can sometimes be thought strange that companies which play such an important role in the financial market remain virtually unregulated.