Subject: File No. S7-25-99
From: Michael Lavelline

July 23, 2004

As an individual investor I would like to comment on the proposed rule.

If an investor is paying a fixed fee or percentage fee to a broker to receive investment advice and other services I believe that such brokers should be considered Investment Advisors and held to the fiduciary standard of acting in the best interests of their clients. To not do so puts the interests of investors at risk. With ever increasing numbers of small investors, standards to insure that individuals providing fee paid investment advice are acting in the best interests of clients should be strengthened, not weakened.

The proposed SEC rule appears to be a step backward in this regard. What is needed is a clear, unambiguous "bright Line" standard states that if investment advice is being paid for by a client, the provider of the advice has a fiduciary obligation to act in the best interests of the client.

Thank you for providing the opportunity to comment of the proposed rule.

Sincerely,

Michael Lavelline