For Immediate Release                            98-78

  Susan M. Ochs Named Director of the Office of Legislative
                           Affairs
                              
     Washington D.C., August 25, 1998 -- Securities and
Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt today named Susan
M. Ochs as incoming Director of the Commission's Office of
Legislative Affairs.  Ms. Ochs, currently the Deputy
Director of the Office of Legislative Affairs, will succeed
Kaye F. Williams, who is departing the Commission in
September.

     Chairman Levitt said, "Susan Ochs has been an
invaluable member of our legislative team.  Since her
arrival, she has demonstrated a remarkable facility with the
nuanced and technically complex issues facing the
Commission.  Her unique background, a blend of Wall Street
experience and government service, gives Susan a practical
perspective on the work of the Commission and its effect on
the private sector.  I have relied on her insightful counsel
and sound judgment during this busy legislative season, and
I look forward to our continued work together."

     As Director, Ms. Ochs will be the SEC's principal
architect of legislative policy and will advise the Chairman
and the Commission.  She will serve as the chief liaison to
Members of Congress and their staff and will monitor
legislation concerning the Commission.  Ms. Ochs will also
coordinate the preparation for congressional testimony for
the Chairman, Commissioners, and senior SEC staff.

     Ms. Ochs has served as Deputy Director of the Office of
Legislative Affairs at the Commission since December 1997.
Before joining the Commission, Ms. Ochs was an analyst in
the Office of Legislative Affairs at the Treasury Department
where she worked on banking, appropriations and
international trade issues.  Previously, she coordinated
arbitrage and derivative trades and managed cash positions
as a portfolio assistant at
J.P. Morgan Investment Management, Inc. from 1993 until
1995.

     Ms. Ochs graduated cum laude from Duke University with
a B.A. in economics.

                           #  #  #