August 27, 2010
I urge the SEC not to impose additional regulations on registered representatives. The suitability standard governing broker-dealers and registered representatives is a robust and heavily enforced standard. Compliance costs-both in terms of finances and time are high, and those costs are eventually felt by clients. Adding another layer of regulation means another layer of compliance, and even more cost to clients.
I currently hold life, health and variable annuity insurance licenses in addition to Series 6,63. Every year I attend continuing education courses and am examined annually and follow additional company required training. Each application now takes about 60 minutes to complete.
Imposing additional fiduciary standards on all advisors may serve well to reduce the number of advisors in the profession but will not necessarily provide greater consumer protection.
Unfortuantely, there will always be people who wish to do others harm. These unethical individuals should be and can be weeded out of the profession, with our existing regulations.
Perhaps efforts should be concentrated on those individulas who use the media to misinform and ill-advise the public at large. Those persons should be stringently regulated and probably banned from the air and TV.