From: Marian Krewson
Sent: August 13, 2006
To: rule-comments@sec.gov
Subject: File No. S7-03-04

SEC Chairman Christopher Cox

Dear SEC Chairman Cox,

Mutual funds are an increasingly important savings vehicle for tens of millions of working Americans like me. We are the owners of these funds and we bear the risks if they are dominated by self-interested insiders. We look to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to protect us. I am writing to express my strong support for the proposed rule requiring that mutual fund boards have an independent chairperson and at least 75 percent independent directors. These rules were among the most important reforms adopted by the SEC in the wake of the mutual fund trading and sales abuse scandals.

A recent study by AFSCME and The Corporate Library found mutual funds provide a rubber stamp for excessive management pay, supporting more than three-quarters of all management pay proposals. Ninety percent of institutional investors think the current system overpays executives. We need independent directors to stand up to the excesses of the money managers.
I had the misfortune to work for a company who convinced the employees to buy the company with pay cuts for 6 yrs in return for stock--which by the time I was allowed to sell it, was practically worthless. Since then, they have done away with our pensions, and all the while management is getting bonuses for good work!! They've laid off thousnds and shipped many jobs overseas, and yet they continue to get rich. Is this the way to be a good CEO? You must get independant directors to oversee mutual funds to stop the greed and mismanagement or more and more people will be in the same situation that I am!! Do the right thing for all of us!
The Investment Company Act requires that mutual funds be managed in the interests of their shareholders. Requiring independent directors and chairpersons will help ensure this safeguard for the small investor, to make sure the little person gets a fair shake.

Sincerely,

MARIAN KREWSON