In response to a public outcry over compensation and other practices and a call for accountability in the current financial crisis, a sharply divided Commission today proposed amendments that would permit shareholders owning a specified percentage of a public company’s shares to nominate a limited number of board directors on the company’s proxy statement. SEC Chairman Mary L. Schapiro proposed the amendments over the objection of Republican Commissioners, Kathleen L. Casey and Troy A. Paredes, in an attempt to resolve the so-called “proxy access” debate that began decades ago.