In FY 2008, the SEC was authorized by Congress to spend $906 million, a 2 percent increase over the approximately $888 million authorized in FYs 2006 and 2007.
Enforcement Complaints, Tips, and
Referrals
OIEA Requests
for Assistance/Information
The agency monitors its performance across a number of strategic measures that gauge the impact, timeliness, and quality of its operations. Due to aggressive and sustained efforts by SEC staff, the agency improved results across its strategic performance measures in FY 2008 with nearly 74 percent of planned performance levels either being met or exceeded.
In FY 2008, agency staff handled over 600,000 tips sent by individuals to the SEC’s Enforcement Complaint Center (ECC) while the Office of Investor Education and Advocacy (OIEA) responded to over 600,000 contacts, including 77,000 requests for assistance, closing nearly 16,000 Freedom of Information Act requests, and distributing over 500,000 educational pamphlets on investing matters. A falloff in ECC complaints about investment spam, the result of the SEC’s successful initiative to combat spam-driven stock market manipulations, was responsible in large part for the significant decrease in contacts from FY 2007. Launched in 2007, the anti-spam initiative focused on protecting investors from potentially fraudulent email solicitations hyping stocks.
Helping Investors
SEC staff throughout the agency work on behalf of investors—analyzing information and assessing potential wrongdoing, assisting individuals in resolving matters with the firms or representatives handling their investments, and providing valuable educational materials.In FY 2008, agency staff handled over 600,000 tips sent by individuals to the SEC’s Enforcement Complaint Center (ECC) while the Office of Investor Education and Advocacy (OIEA) responded to over 600,000 contacts, including 77,000 requests for assistance, closing nearly 16,000 Freedom of Information Act requests, and distributing over 500,000 educational pamphlets on investing matters. A falloff in ECC complaints about investment spam, the result of the SEC’s successful initiative to combat spam-driven stock market manipulations, was responsible in large part for the significant decrease in contacts from FY 2007. Launched in 2007, the anti-spam initiative focused on protecting investors from potentially fraudulent email solicitations hyping stocks.