ASA Urges SEC to Rescind Muni Advisor Regulatory Rollback

The ASA strongly opposes this initiative and urges the Commission to swiftly rescind the Order.

WASHINGTON – The American Securities Association (ASA) today sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) urging the Commission to rescind its Exemptive Order allowing municipal advisors to avoid broker-dealer registration—and the regulatory requirements that accompany this registration—in their interactions with municipalities. In the letter, ASA also outlined how the SEC’s action is in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) and Exchange Act.

“In this one action, the Commission has simultaneously undermined the robust and effective broker-dealer regulatory regime, weakened investor protections in the municipal market, subjectively favored certain market participants over others, and evaded the process and public input requirements of the APA,” wrote ASA CEO Chris Iacovella. “While ‘temporary’ and ‘conditional,’ the Order is another example of an administrative state regulator skirting the necessary process requirements to arrive at a preferred policy outcome.”

“Using the COVID-19 pandemic as a pretext for creating a regulatory loophole only further amplifies the process fouls that led to the Order being issued. Broker-dealers have continued to serve municipalities of all sizes during this crisis and have maintained their critical role of providing capital and liquidity to cities and communities across America. There is no data to support the argument that unregulated municipal advisors are somehow a missing ingredient to an economic recovery. In fact, the evidence and history demonstrate the risks unregulated municipal advisors pose, and that the Order may only serve to undermine confidence in this market.”

“The ASA strongly opposes this initiative and urges the Commission to swiftly rescind the Order,” Iacovella wrote.

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ASA’s regional financial services companies work in communities across the country to create jobs, grow the economy, and increase prosperity for all Americans. The ASA exclusively represents the capital market and private client interests of its members and seeks to promote free market principles making it easier to access financial advice and capital. ASA members help Americans save for retirement, provide Main Street businesses with capital to grow, and advise hardworking Americans how to create and preserve wealth. For the latest updates follow @AmerSecurities and learn more at http://americansecurities.org/.