Accountants Board Tin Ear Now Golden

"They've totally destroyed the credibility of the organization by this money grab," Crystal said.

As disturbing as the compensation issue is, experts say another decision by the board is equally wrongheaded. The committee decided to defer consideration of whether to rotate its own auditor every five years until the General Accounting Office has issued its report on mandatory rotation. Board member Kayla Gillan, who initially raised the issue, was hoping that the committee would be a model for all companies.

"We need an oversight board for the oversight board," said Arne Alsin, founder and principal of Alsin Capital Management and contributor to RealMoney.com, TheStreet.com's sister site.

Alsin said the board is supposed to set a standard for the entire industry and has failed to do that so far. He also rejects the notion that a huge salary is necessary to attract good talent, saying there are many Ivy League professors who would have worked for $100,000 a year. "It would have been a honor for these people to sit on a board like this," he said.

A Lot to You Maybe

Still, Scott Wendelin, chief executive of Prospect Financial Advisors, said now isn't the time to be trying to save money in the accounting industry.

Wendelin said "452,000 is insignificant in the context of investor losses over the past few years," adding that, "It's a very small price to pay to restart public confidence."