September 1, 2004
I urge you to withdraw, not amend, the rule proposal. As a financial advisor that already is held to a fiduciary standard, it is not appropriate to have two different standards for those offering financial advice. All people offering advice should be held to the same fiduciary standard.
The consumer is not able to see or understand the difference, and often times only recognize it after abuses occur. We have seen countless examples of this when clients join our firm after suffering abuses from these non-fiduciary advisors.
The Financial Planning Association, The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, The Consumer Federation of America, and AARP are all in support of withdrawal of this rule proposal.
Thank you for addressing this important issue.