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Waste Management, a North American waste management, comprehensive waste, and evironemental service company was founded on this day in Houston, Texas
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Between these years, Waste Management's executive officers began "cooking" the books by not recording expenses necessary to write off the costs of unsuccessful and abandoned landfill development projects; establishing inflated environmental reserves (liabilities) in connection with acquisitions so that the excess reserves could be used to avoid recording unrelated operating expenses, improperly capitalizing a variety of expenses; failing to establish sufficient reserves (liabilities).
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The new CEO of Waste Management ordered a review of the companies accounting practices. Thus leading to the restatement of the company's financial records.
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In 1998 Waste Management restated its 1992-1997 earnings by $1.7 billion, making it the largest restatement in history.
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When the news became public the shareholders of Waste Management lost more than $6 billion dollars. Their stocks had plummeted more than 33%.
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Waste Management merged with USA Waste Services, Inc. USA Waste Services CEO John E, Drury remained the chairman, and CEO position of the new merged companies.
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A class action lawsuit was filed against Waste Management and certains officers for issuing false statements
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Waste Management paid $457 million to settle a shareholder class-action suit . The SEC fined Waste Management's independent auditor, Arthur Andersen, US$7 million for its role.
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Officers were accused of making "the financials look the way we want to show them." The top officers , without admitting any guilt, settled with the federal government for 30.8 million dollars.
