In Reform Bill, Fiduciary Duty, EIA Regulation Face Vote on June 22

But SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro has raised concerns about whether the states would have adequate means to regulate the onslaught of new advisory firms to examine; raising the asset threshold would shift about 4,200 SEC-registered advisors to state jurisdiction. Denise Voigt Crawford, president of NASAA and the Texas Securities Commissioner, said in a recent conference call with reporters that the SEC has failed to examine about 3,000 advisory firms, so if the states win jurisdiction over more firms “that would be an improvement.” The SEC, Crawford continued, has stated that the agency plans to focus its examination efforts on the larger advisory firms.

Other critics worry that with state budgets in turmoil, the states will lack the adequate resources to exam advisory firms. But Crawford said during the conference call that while it’s true that some “states are experiencing major resource problems; states are not actively cutting budgets for securities related efforts.” Crawford also pointed out that the states have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which they will combine their resources when examining advisors.