SEC regulations

Rich Moore takes over the top spot at NABL during the first day of a three-day annual conference in Chicago.

This is the second letter BDA has sent to the SEC in the last couple of months opposing any kind of relief for muni advisors involved in private placements.

The group sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission this week asking for fair dealing rule guidance to be better tailored to 529 savings plans.

The MSRB wants to work with other regulatory groups to decrease confusion surrounding suitability rules in conjunction with the SEC's new Regulation Best Interest.

Warren is among the most prominent Capitol Hill voices on issues related to financial regulation.

SEC Chair Clayton’s comments that information on EMMA is subject to more scrutiny could be true for some participants depending on issuers’ reliance on the MSRB site.

The National Association of Municipal Advisors wants SEC staff action to protect MAs and possible eventual rulemaking to create "regulatory parity" between MAs and broker-dealers.

Clayton noted a trend of issuers being advised that information they supply on EMMA is subject to more anti-fraud scrutiny than information provided in other ways.

At its quarterly board meeting last week, the MSRB decided to do away with Rule G-34’s provision that all municipal advisors, whether dealer or non-dealer, have to apply for a CUSIP number in competitive sales.

Prominent muni market figures will discuss the content and timeliness of disclosure at an SEC committee meeting next week.

Sen. John Kennedy introduced the bill in April, and is attempting to move it forward. It would overhaul MSRB board membership rules, particularly for members representing the public.

Allison Herren Lee is short on direct municipal market experience, but has a well-rounded background as a securities lawyer.

Both BDA and SIFMA have now both asked the SEC not to grant regulatory relief to PFM, one of the largest municipal advisors in the business.

A PFM letter caused a firestorm among dealer groups who say that if municipal advisors want to engage in broker-dealer activities, they need to register as such.

The new events became effective in late February, and hundreds of Event 15 disclosures have filed in, with just a handful of Event 16 filings.

On Wednesday, the SEC approved the final rule 3-1, with Commissioner Robert Jackson voting against the rule.

Some stakeholders say the CUSIP requirement for MAs is needed, while other say it is burdensome.

Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Chair Gary Hall said the MSRB will examine governance rules such as the time period between when individuals leave their industry jobs and when they are allowed to become public board members.

GFOA members said they were taken aback and in some cases upset about the tone of the National Federation of Municipal Analysts' letter to regulators.

The BDA believes that in addition to removing the Rule’s restriction on competitively bid transactions, it should consider simply eliminating it altogether.