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Testimony of Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association to ERISA Advisory Council re Revenue Sharing and Disclosure (PDF)

Excerpt: I will begin by providing some background information about revenue sharing arrangements and the basis upon which they are determined. In providing this background information, I will talk about the confusion created by the use of the term 'revenue sharing' and emphasize the need for greater clarity in the terminology used to describe different types of revenue streams. I will then turn to address the subject of guidance that might be issued by the Department of Labor regarding the proper use of any plan assets resulting from a plan's receipt of these payments, and how any such assets should be allocated to participants.

SIFMA Submits Comments and New Evidence of the DOL Fiduciary Rule's Negative Impact on Retirement Savers

"SIFMA provides the following to assist in the DOL's review of the Rule: [1] data detailing the negative impact to investors as firms move to implement the Rule and Exemptions; [2] An explanation of why it is unnecessary to create a new private right of action to change the standard of conduct in the financial services sector; [3] Changes to the regulatory language needed to help make this Rule work for retirement savers; [4] Comments regarding the Exemptions; and [5] A proposed new principles-based exemption that protects investors and provides certainty to service providers seeking to comply with the Rule's intent." [See full text of comment letter and Deloitte study commissioned by SIFMA.]

SIFMA Comment Letter to DOL on Proposed Delay and Reconsideration of Fiduciary Rule (PDF)

128 pages. "[T]he path chosen by the former Administration has proven to be impractical, unworkable, unrealistic and therefore, unlikely to lead to better financial results for retirement savers.... [1] It limits products and services and makes both more costly to retirement investors. [2] It has disrupted the industry in such a way that millions of retirement savers will be unable to purchase lifetime income options ... [3] The exemptions' reliance on private plaintiffs to enforce the Rule significantly increases the probability of meritless litigation and will likely lead to even further increases to the costs of products and services[.]"

SIFMA Comment Letter to DOL on Its Fiduciary Rule Proposal

"The Department has greatly expanded the scope of service providers subject to the fiduciary requirements of ERISA and the Code ... while creating very limited, inflexible, and prescriptive exceptions and exemptions that do not work and will not be in the best interest of American retirement investors. The net effect is that this proposal, if enacted, would limit the ability of Americans to continue to receive personalized investment guidance for retirement plan accounts, which would result in a less secure retirement for many Americans already seeking to save and invest for their financial future."

SIFMA Comment Letter to EBSA on Proposed Delay of Fiduciary Rule

"Our members have spent hundreds of millions of dollars getting ready to comply with the Rule, and a group of our largest members alone estimate that they would need to spend an additional $300 million to be ready for the April 2017 compliance deadline. If the entire industry is in roughly the same position, more than a billion dollars must still be spent to be ready for the April applicability date. Further, members need to plan for the January 2018 compliance date. Without a corresponding extension of the transition period, members will continue to expend substantial resources."

SIFMA Comment Letter to SEC on Recommendations of the Investor as Purchaser Subcommittee on Broker-Dealer Fiduciary Duty (PDF)

"[T]he Subcommittee (and indeed, the Committee) does not have a single broker-dealer representative. A representative from our industry could provide the necessary perspective to help generate more practical, consensus-based recommendations that would benefit all parties, but most particularly retail investors.... Section 913 should be implemented through rulemaking under the Exchange Act for broker-dealers.... [This] rulemaking should require broker-dealers to provide customers with uniform, plain English disclosures.... Section 913 should not be abandoned in favor of an approach that Congress considered and rejected -- namely, tinkering with the broker-dealer exemption."

SIFMA Submits Comments to DOL on Proposed Safe Harbors for State-Run Retirement Plans

"SIFMA believes this proposal is a step in the wrong direction ... It does not address the fundamental issues that prevent Americans from saving more for retirement. It could lead to 50 different state plans throughout the country. It puts an additional cost burden on states and crowds out the private market. States would be highly unlikely to provide the same level of education, service and guidance as private sector providers."

SIFMA Raises Concerns with Proposed Fiduciary Standard at DOL Hearing

"SIFMA's members have long called for the implementation of a best interest or uniform fiduciary standard of care for brokers and advisors when providing personalized investment advice. On that the record is quite clear. Rather, we disagree with the process whereby one agency is developing yet another standard that will apply to only one sector of the retail investment market.... The bifurcation of standards will create confusion both for investors and the providers who must comply."

SIFMA Comments on a Proposed Definition of Fiduciary Regulation

SIFMA believes the proposed regulation would have unintended consequences including, but not limited to: 1) impacting the ability of millions of Americans to save for retirement; and 2) limiting access to markets, investment products and services providers.

SIFMA Lawsuit Claims Missouri Anti-ESG Rules Are Pre-Empted by ERISA

"The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association [SIFMA] filed a lawsuit ... challenging two regulations enacted by the state of Missouri that require additional recordkeeping for advisers and brokers recommending or selecting investments with a 'non-financial objective.' The rules took effect on July 30." [SIFMA v. Ashcroft, No. 23-4154 (D. Mo. complaint filed Aug. 10, 2023)]