March 17, 2004
Hello,
I read the summary and briefly scanned the rule.
I am an average investor who left mutual funds about six years ago. It frustrated me to see how the funds advertising claimed one rate of return for a year and I saw a different rate on my yearly statements.
I strongly favor the implementation of these rules. They are a step in the right direction. However, my concern is that they are enforceable. For years the SEC has been a profit center for the federal government. The fees the SEC collected for financial filings far exceeded the budgeted expenses for its personnel Fortune magazine.
One question on the SEC site was if the costs of these new requirements would be onerous for the investor or would not be beneficial in the long run. The investor and the consumer have always paid for enhanced legislation because business pass those costs along as a normal cost of doing business. The benefit for the investor of being able to compare a fund to other funds already available annually in the Wall Street Journal and other sources is beneficial for those who do not read the business newspapers or have access to the internet. The cost to the funds is that the information will be very easy to find for the unsophisticated investor.
Sincerely,
Bill