In its recent rule proposals regarding proxy disclosures, the SEC has asked for comment regarding a requirement that shareholder voting results be disclosed on a Form 8-K within four business days. Currently shareholder voting results are disclosed on the next Form 10-Q or 10-K, which could take as long as a few months before filing occurs. The rule also provides that non-definitive voting results in contested director elections can be disclosed as preliminary and finalized by a subsequent 8-K amendment.
The best reason articulated by the SEC for the proposed rule is that if a matter is important enough to require a shareholder vote then it is important enough to warrant current reporting of the results of that vote. For companies that want to disclose shareholder votes as soon as possible, technological advances in shareholder communications have made even four days seem like a long time.
