  title ix investor protections and improvements to the regulation of securities  sec 901 short title  this title may be cited as the investor protection and securities reform act of 2010    subtitle a increasing investor protection  sec 911 investor advisory committee established  title i of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by adding at the end the following  sec 39 investor advisory committee  a establishment and purpose  1 establishment there is established within the commission the investor advisory committee referred to in this section as the committee   2 purpose the committee shall  a advise and consult with the commission on  i regulatory priorities of the commission   ii issues relating to the regulation of securities products, trading strategies, and fee structures, and the effectiveness of disclosure   iii initiatives to protect investor interest and   iv initiatives to promote investor confidence and the integrity of the securities marketplace and    b submit to the commission such findings and recommendations as the committee determines are appropriate, including recommendations for proposed legislative changes     b membership  1 in general the members of the committee shall be  a the investor advocate   b a representative of state securities commissions   c a representative of the interests of senior citizens and   d not fewer than 10, and not more than 20, members appointed by the commission, from among individuals who  i represent the interests of individual equity and debt investors, including investors in mutual funds   ii represent the interests of institutional investors, including the interests of pension funds and registered investment companies   iii are knowledgeable about investment issues and decisions and   iv have reputations of integrity     2 term each member of the committee appointed under paragraph 1 b shall serve for a term of 4 years   3 members not commission employees members appointed under paragraph 1 b shall not be deemed to be employees or agents of the commission solely because of membership on the committee    c chairman vice chairman secretary assistant secretary  1 in general the members of the committee shall elect, from among the members of the committee  a a chairman, who may not be employed by an issuer   b a vice chairman, who may not be employed by an issuer   c a secretary and   d an assistant secretary    2 term each member elected under paragraph 1 shall serve for a term of 3 years in the capacity for which the member was elected under paragraph 1    d meetings  1 frequency of meetings the committee shall meet  a not less frequently than twice annually, at the call of the chairman of the committee and   b from time to time, at the call of the commission    2 notice the chairman of the committee shall give the members of the committee written notice of each meeting, not later than 2 weeks before the date of the meeting    e compensation and travel expenses each member of the committee who is not a full-time employee of the united states shall  1 be entitled to receive compensation at a rate not to exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect for a position at level v of the executive schedule under section 5316 of title 5, united states code, for each day during which the member is engaged in the actual performance of the duties of the committee and   2 while away from the home or regular place of business of the member in the performance of services for the committee, be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons employed intermittently in the government service are allowed expenses under section 5703 b of title 5, united states code    f staff the commission shall make available to the committee such staff as the chairman of the committee determines are necessary to carry out this section   g review by commission the commission shall  1 review the findings and recommendations of the committee and   2 each time the committee submits a finding or recommendation to the commission, promptly issue a public statement  a assessing the finding or recommendation of the committee and   b disclosing the action, if any, the commission intends to take with respect to the finding or recommendation     h committee findings nothing in this section shall require the commission to agree to or act upon any finding or recommendation of the committee   i federal advisory committee act the federal advisory committee act 5 usc app shall not apply with respect to the committee and its activities   j authorization of appropriations there is authorized to be appropriated to the commission such sums as are necessary to carry out this section       sec 912 clarification of authority of the commission to engage in investor testing  section 19 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77s is amended by adding at the end the following  e evaluation of rules or programs for the purpose of evaluating any rule or program of the commission issued or carried out under any provision of the securities laws, as defined in section 3 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c , and the purposes of considering, proposing, adopting, or engaging in any such rule or program or developing new rules or programs, the commission may  1 gather information from and communicate with investors or other members of the public   2 engage in such temporary investor testing programs as the commission determines are in the public interest or would protect investors and   3 consult with academics and consultants, as necessary to carry out this subsection    f rule of construction for purposes of the paperwork reduction act 44 usc 3501 et seq , any action taken under subsection e shall not be construed to be a collection of information      sec 913 study and rulemaking regarding obligations of brokers, dealers, and investment advisers  a definition for purposes of this section, the term retail customer means a natural person, or the legal representative of such natural person, who  1 receives personalized investment advice about securities from a broker or dealer or investment adviser and   2 uses such advice primarily for personal, family, or household purposes    b study the commission shall conduct a study to evaluate  1 the effectiveness of existing legal or regulatory standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice and recommendations about securities to retail customers imposed by the commission and a national securities association, and other federal and state legal or regulatory standards and   2 whether there are legal or regulatory gaps, shortcomings, or overlaps in legal or regulatory standards in the protection of retail customers relating to the standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers that should be addressed by rule or statute    c considerations in conducting the study required under subsection b , the commission shall consider  1 the effectiveness of existing legal or regulatory standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice and recommendations about securities to retail customers imposed by the commission and a national securities association, and other federal and state legal or regulatory standards   2 whether there are legal or regulatory gaps, shortcomings, or overlaps in legal or regulatory standards in the protection of retail customers relating to the standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers that should be addressed by rule or statute   3 whether retail customers understand that there are different standards of care applicable to brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers in the provision of personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers   4 whether the existence of different standards of care applicable to brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers is a source of confusion for retail customers regarding the quality of personalized investment advice that retail customers receive   5 the regulatory, examination, and enforcement resources devoted to, and activities of, the commission, the states, and a national securities association to enforce the standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers when providing personalized investment advice and recommendations about securities to retail customers, including  a the effectiveness of the examinations of brokers, dealers, and investment advisers in determining compliance with regulations   b the frequency of the examinations and   c the length of time of the examinations    6 the substantive differences in the regulation of brokers, dealers, and investment advisers, when providing personalized investment advice and recommendations about securities to retail customers   7 the specific instances related to the provision of personalized investment advice about securities in which  a the regulation and oversight of investment advisers provide greater protection to retail customers than the regulation and oversight of brokers and dealers and   b the regulation and oversight of brokers and dealers provide greater protection to retail customers than the regulation and oversight of investment advisers    8 the existing legal or regulatory standards of state securities regulators and other regulators intended to protect retail customers   9 the potential impact on retail customers, including the potential impact on access of retail customers to the range of products and services offered by brokers and dealers, of imposing upon brokers, dealers, and persons associated with brokers or dealers  a the standard of care applied under the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq for providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers of investment advisers, as interpreted by the commission and the courts and   b other requirements of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq    10 the potential impact of eliminating the broker and dealer exclusion from the definition of investment adviser under section 202 a 11 c of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b2 a 11 c , in terms of  a the impact and potential benefits and harm to retail customers that could result from such a change, including any potential impact on access to personalized investment advice and recommendations about securities to retail customers or the availability of such advice and recommendations   b the number of additional entities and individuals that would be required to register under, or become subject to, the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq , and the additional requirements to which brokers, dealers, and persons associated with brokers and dealers would become subject, including  i any potential additional associated person licensing, registration, and examination requirements and   ii the additional costs, if any, to the additional entities and individuals and    c the impact on commission and state resources to  i conduct examinations of registered investment advisers and the representatives of registered investment advisers, including the impact on the examination cycle and   ii enforce the standard of care and other applicable requirements imposed under the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq     11 the varying level of services provided by brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers to retail customers and the varying scope and terms of retail customer relationships of brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers with such retail customers   12 the potential impact upon retail customers that could result from potential changes in the regulatory requirements or legal standards of care affecting brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers relating to their obligations to retail customers regarding the provision of investment advice, including any potential impact on  a protection from fraud   b access to personalized investment advice, and recommendations about securities to retail customers or   c the availability of such advice and recommendations    13 the potential additional costs and expenses to  a retail customers regarding and the potential impact on the profitability of their investment decisions and   b brokers, dealers, and investment advisers resulting from potential changes in the regulatory requirements or legal standards affecting brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers relating to their obligations, including duty of care, to retail customers and    14 any other consideration that the commission considers necessary and appropriate in determining whether to conduct a rulemaking under subsection f    d report  1 in general not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall submit a report on the study required under subsection b to  a the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and   b the committee on financial services of the house of representatives    2 content requirements the report required under paragraph 1 shall describe the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the commission from the study required under subsection b , including  a a description of the considerations, analysis, and public and industry input that the commission considered, as required under subsection b , to make such findings, conclusions, and policy recommendations and   b an analysis of whether any identified legal or regulatory gaps, shortcomings, or overlap in legal or regulatory standards in the protection of retail customers relating to the standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers     e public comment the commission shall seek and consider public input, comments, and data in order to prepare the report required under subsection d   f rulemaking the commission may commence a rulemaking, as necessary or appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of retail customers and such other customers as the commission may by rule provide , to address the legal or regulatory standards of care for brokers, dealers, investment advisers, persons associated with brokers or dealers, and persons associated with investment advisers for providing personalized investment advice about securities to such retail customers the commission shall consider the findings conclusions, and recommendations of the study required under subsection b   g authority to establish a fiduciary duty for brokers and dealers  1 securities exchange act of 1934 section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o is amended by adding at the end the following  k standard of conduct  1 in general notwithstanding any other provision of this act or the investment advisers act of 1940, the commission may promulgate rules to provide that, with respect to a broker or dealer, when providing personalized investment advice about securities to a retail customer and such other customers as the commission may by rule provide , the standard of conduct for such broker or dealer with respect to such customer shall be the same as the standard of conduct applicable to an investment adviser under section 211 of the investment advisers act of 1940 the receipt of compensation based on commission or other standard compensation for the sale of securities shall not, in and of itself, be considered a violation of such standard applied to a broker or dealer nothing in this section shall require a broker or dealer or registered representative to have a continuing duty of care or loyalty to the customer after providing personalized investment advice about securities   2 disclosure of range of products offered where a broker or dealer sells only proprietary or other limited range of products, as determined by the commission, the commission may by rule require that such broker or dealer provide notice to each retail customer and obtain the consent or acknowledgment of the customer the sale of only proprietary or other limited range of products by a broker or dealer shall not, in and of itself, be considered a violation of the standard set forth in paragraph 1    l other matters the commission shall  1 facilitate the provision of simple and clear disclosures to investors regarding the terms of their relationships with brokers, dealers, and investment advisers, including any material conflicts of interest and   2 examine and, where appropriate, promulgate rules prohibiting or restricting certain sales practices, conflicts of interest, and compensation schemes for brokers, dealers, and investment advisers that the commission deems contrary to the public interest and the protection of investors      2 investment advisers act of 1940 section 211 of the investment advisers act of 1940, is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsections  g standard of conduct  1 in general the commission may promulgate rules to provide that the standard of conduct for all brokers, dealers, and investment advisers, when providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers and such other customers as the commission may by rule provide , shall be to act in the best interest of the customer without regard to the financial or other interest of the broker, dealer, or investment adviser providing the advice in accordance with such rules, any material conflicts of interest shall be disclosed and may be consented to by the customer such rules shall provide that such standard of conduct shall be no less stringent than the standard applicable to investment advisers under section 206 1 and 2 of this act when providing personalized investment advice about securities, except the commission shall not ascribe a meaning to the term customer that would include an investor in a private fund managed by an investment adviser, where such private fund has entered into an advisory contract with such adviser the receipt of compensation based on commission or fees shall not, in and of itself, be considered a violation of such standard applied to a broker, dealer, or investment adviser   2 retail customer defined for purposes of this subsection, the term retail customer means a natural person, or the legal representative of such natural person, who  a receives personalized investment advice about securities from a broker, dealer, or investment adviser and   b uses such advice primarily for personal, family, or household purposes     h other matters the commission shall  1 facilitate the provision of simple and clear disclosures to investors regarding the terms of their relationships with brokers, dealers, and investment advisers, including any material conflicts of interest and   2 examine and, where appropriate, promulgate rules prohibiting or restricting certain sales practices, conflicts of interest, and compensation schemes for brokers, dealers, and investment advisers that the commission deems contrary to the public interest and the protection of investors       h harmonization of enforcement  1 securities exchange act of 1934 section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934, as amended by subsection g 1 , is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  m harmonization of enforcement the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to violations of the standard of conduct applicable to a broker or dealer providing personalized investment advice about securities to a retail customer shall include  1 the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to such violations provided under this act and   2 the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to violations of the standard of conduct applicable to an investment adviser under the investment advisers act of 1940, including the authority to impose sanctions for such violations, and  the commission shall seek to prosecute and sanction violators of the standard of conduct applicable to a broker or dealer providing personalized investment advice about securities to a retail customer under this act to same extent as the commission prosecutes and sanctions violators of the standard of conduct applicable to an investment advisor under the investment advisers act of 1940     2 investment advisers act of 1940 section 211 of the investment advisers act of 1940, as amended by subsection g 2 , is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  i harmonization of enforcement the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to violations of the standard of conduct applicable to an investment adviser shall include  1 the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to such violations provided under this act and   2 the enforcement authority of the commission with respect to violations of the standard of conduct applicable to a broker or dealer providing personalized investment advice about securities to a retail customer under the securities exchange act of 1934, including the authority to impose sanctions for such violations, and  the commission shall seek to prosecute and sanction violators of the standard of conduct applicable to an investment adviser under this act to same extent as the commission prosecutes and sanctions violators of the standard of conduct applicable to a broker or dealer providing personalized investment advice about securities to a retail customer under the securities exchange act of 1934       sec 914 study on enhancing investment adviser examinations  a study required  1 in general the commission shall review and analyze the need for enhanced examination and enforcement resources for investment advisers   2 areas of consideration the study required by this subsection shall examine  a the number and frequency of examinations of investment advisers by the commission over the 5 years preceding the date of the enactment of this subtitle   b the extent to which having congress authorize the commission to designate one or more self-regulatory organizations to augment the commissions efforts in overseeing investment advisers would improve the frequency of examinations of investment advisers and   c current and potential approaches to examining the investment advisory activities of dually registered broker-dealers and investment advisers or affiliated broker-dealers and investment advisers     b report required the commission shall report its findings to the committee on financial services of the house of representatives and the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this subtitle, and shall use such findings to revise its rules and regulations, as necessary the report shall include a discussion of regulatory or legislative steps that are recommended or that may be necessary to address concerns identified in the study    sec 915 office of the investor advocate  section 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78d is amended by adding at the end the following  g office of the investor advocate  1 office established there is established within the commission the office of the investor advocate in this subsection referred to as the office   2 investor advocate  a in general the head of the office shall be the investor advocate, who shall  i report directly to the chairman and   ii be appointed by the chairman, in consultation with the commission, from among individuals having experience in advocating for the interests of investors in securities and investor protection issues, from the perspective of investors    b compensation the annual rate of pay for the investor advocate shall be equal to the highest rate of annual pay for other senior executives who report to the chairman of the commission   c limitation on service an individual who serves as the investor advocate may not be employed by the commission  i during the 2-year period ending on the date of appointment as investor advocate or   ii during the 5-year period beginning on the date on which the person ceases to serve as the investor advocate     3 staff of office the investor advocate, after consultation with the chairman of the commission, may retain or employ independent counsel, research staff, and service staff, as the investor advocate deems necessary to carry out the functions, powers, and duties of the office   4 functions of the investor advocate the investor advocate shall  a assist retail investors in resolving significant problems such investors may have with the commission or with self-regulatory organizations   b identify areas in which investors would benefit from changes in the regulations of the commission or the rules of self-regulatory organizations   c identify problems that investors have with financial service providers and investment products   d analyze the potential impact on investors of  i proposed regulations of the commission and   ii proposed rules of self-regulatory organizations registered under this title and    e to the extent practicable, propose to the commission changes in the regulations or orders of the commission and to congress any legislative, administrative, or personnel changes that may be appropriate to mitigate problems identified under this paragraph and to promote the interests of investors    5 access to documents the commission shall ensure that the investor advocate has full access to the documents of the commission and any self-regulatory organization, as necessary to carry out the functions of the office   6 annual reports  a report on objectives  i in general not later than june 30 of each year after 2010, the investor advocate shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the objectives of the investor advocate for the following fiscal year   ii contents each report required under clause i shall contain full and substantive analysis and explanation    b report on activities  i in general not later than december 31 of each year after 2010, the investor advocate shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the activities of the investor advocate during the immediately preceding fiscal year   ii contents each report required under clause i shall include  i appropriate statistical information and full and substantive analysis   ii information on steps that the investor advocate has taken during the reporting period to improve investor services and the responsiveness of the commission and self-regulatory organizations to investor concerns   iii a summary of the most serious problems encountered by investors during the reporting period   iv an inventory of the items described in subclause iii that includes  aa identification of any action taken by the commission or the self-regulatory organization and the result of such action   bb the length of time that each item has remained on such inventory and   cc for items on which no action has been taken, the reasons for inaction, and an identification of any official who is responsible for such action    v recommendations for such administrative and legislative actions as may be appropriate to resolve problems encountered by investors and   vi any other information, as determined appropriate by the investor advocate    iii independence each report required under this paragraph shall be provided directly to the committees listed in clause i without any prior review or comment from the commission, any commissioner, any other officer or employee of the commission, or the office of management and budget   iv confidentiality no report required under clause i may contain confidential information     7 regulations the commission shall, by regulation, establish procedures requiring a formal response to all recommendations submitted to the commission by the investor advocate, not later than 3 months after the date of such submission       sec 916 streamlining of filing procedures for self-regulatory organizations  a filing procedures section 19 b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s b is amended by striking paragraph 2 including the undesignated matter immediately following subparagraph b and inserting the following  2 approval process  a approval process established  i in general except as provided in clause ii , not later than 45 days after the date of publication of a proposed rule change under paragraph 1 , the commission shall  i by order, approve or disapprove the proposed rule change or   ii institute proceedings under subparagraph b to determine whether the proposed rule change should be disapproved    ii extension of time period the commission may extend the period established under clause i by not more than an additional 45 days, if  i the commission determines that a longer period is appropriate and publishes the reasons for such determination or   ii the self-regulatory organization that filed the proposed rule change consents to the longer period     b proceedings  i notice and hearing if the commission does not approve or disapprove a proposed rule change under subparagraph a , the commission shall provide to the self-regulatory organization that filed the proposed rule change  i notice of the grounds for disapproval under consideration and   ii opportunity for hearing, to be concluded not later than 180 days after the date of publication of notice of the filing of the proposed rule change    ii order of approval or disapproval  i in general except as provided in subclause ii , not later than 180 days after the date of publication under paragraph 1 , the commission shall issue an order approving or disapproving the proposed rule change   ii extension of time period the commission may extend the period for issuance under clause i by not more than 60 days, if  aa the commission determines that a longer period is appropriate and publishes the reasons for such determination or   bb the self-regulatory organization that filed the proposed rule change consents to the longer period      c standards for approval and disapproval  i approval the commission shall approve a proposed rule change of a self-regulatory organization if it finds that such proposed rule change is consistent with the requirements of this title and the rules and regulations issued under this title that are applicable to such organization   ii disapproval the commission shall disapprove a proposed rule change of a self-regulatory organization if it does not make a finding described in clause i   iii time for approval the commission may not approve a proposed rule change earlier than 30 days after the date of publication under paragraph 1 , unless the commission finds good cause for so doing and publishes the reason for the finding    d result of failure to institute or conclude proceedings a proposed rule change shall be deemed to have been approved by the commission, if  i the commission does not approve or disapprove the proposed rule change or begin proceedings under subparagraph b within the period described in subparagraph a or   ii the commission does not issue an order approving or disapproving the proposed rule change under subparagraph b within the period described in subparagraph b ii    e publication date based on federal register publishing for purposes of this paragraph, if, after filing a proposed rule change with the commission pursuant to paragraph 1 , a self-regulatory organization publishes a notice of the filing of such proposed rule change, together with the substantive terms of such proposed rule change, on a publicly accessible website, the commission shall thereafter send the notice to the federal register for publication thereof under paragraph 1 within 15 days of the date on which such website publication is made if the commission fails to send the notice for publication thereof within such 15 day period, then the date of publication shall be deemed to be the date on which such website publication was made   f rulemaking  i in general not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the investor protection and securities reform act of 2010, after consultation with other regulatory agencies, the commission shall promulgate rules setting forth the procedural requirements of the proceedings required under this paragraph   ii notice and comment not required the rules promulgated by the commission under clause i are not required to include republication of proposed rule changes or solicitation of public comment       b clarification of filing date  1 rule of construction section 19 b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s b is amended by adding at the end the following  10 rule of construction relating to filing date of proposed rule changes  a in general for purposes of this subsection, the date of filing of a proposed rule change shall be deemed to be the date on which the commission receives the proposed rule change   b exception a proposed rule change has not been received by the commission for purposes of subparagraph a if, not later than 7 business days after the date of receipt by the commission, the commission notifies the self-regulatory organization that such proposed rule change does not comply with the rules of the commission relating to the required form of a proposed rule change, except that if the commission determines that the proposed rule change is unusually lengthy and is complex or raises novel regulatory issues, the commission shall inform the self-regulatory organization of such determination not later than 7 business days after the date of receipt by the commission and, for the purposes of subparagraph a , a proposed rule change has not been received by the commission, if, not later than 21 days after the date of receipt by the commission, the commission notifies the self-regulatory organization that such proposed rule change does not comply with the rules of the commission relating to the required form of a proposed rule change      2 publication section 19 b 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s b 1 is amended by striking upon and inserting as soon as practicable after the date of    c effective date of proposed rules section 19 b 3 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s b 3 is amended  1 in subparagraph a  a by striking may take effect and inserting shall take effect and   b by inserting on any person, whether or not the person is a member of the self-regulatory organization after charge imposed by the self-regulatory organization and    2 in subparagraph c  a by amending the second sentence to read as follows at any time within the 60-day period beginning on the date of filing of such a proposed rule change in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 , the commission summarily may temporarily suspend the change in the rules of the self-regulatory organization made thereby, if it appears to the commission that such action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of this title   b by inserting after the second sentence the following if the commission takes such action, the commission shall institute proceedings under paragraph 2 b to determine whether the proposed rule should be approved or disapproved and   c in the third sentence, by striking the preceding sentence and inserting this subparagraph     d conforming change section 19 b 4 d of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s b 4 d is amended to read as follows  d  i the commission shall order the temporary suspension of any change in the rules of a clearing agency made by a proposed rule change that has taken effect under paragraph 3 , if the appropriate regulatory agency for the clearing agency notifies the commission not later than 30 days after the date on which the proposed rule change was filed of  i the determination by the appropriate regulatory agency that the rules of such clearing agency, as so changed, may be inconsistent with the safeguarding of securities or funds in the custody or control of such clearing agency or for which it is responsible and   ii the reasons for the determination described in subclause i    ii if the commission takes action under clause i , the commission shall institute proceedings under paragraph 2 b to determine if the proposed rule change should be approved or disapproved       sec 917 study regarding financial literacy among investors  a in general the commission shall conduct a study to identify  1 the existing level of financial literacy among retail investors, including subgroups of investors identified by the commission   2 methods to improve the timing, content, and format of disclosures to investors with respect to financial intermediaries, investment products, and investment services   3 the most useful and understandable relevant information that retail investors need to make informed financial decisions before engaging a financial intermediary or purchasing an investment product or service that is typically sold to retail investors, including shares of open-end companies, as that term is defined in section 5 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a5 that are registered under section 8 of that act   4 methods to increase the transparency of expenses and conflicts of interests in transactions involving investment services and products, including shares of open-end companies described in paragraph 3   5 the most effective existing private and public efforts to educate investors and   6 in consultation with the financial literacy and education commission, a strategy including, to the extent practicable, measurable goals and objectives to increase the financial literacy of investors in order to bring about a positive change in investor behavior    b report not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall submit a report on the study required under subsection a to  1 the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and   2 the committee on financial services of the house of representatives     sec 918 study regarding mutual fund advertising  a in general the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study on mutual fund advertising to identify  1 existing and proposed regulatory requirements for open-end investment company advertisements   2 current marketing practices for the sale of open-end investment company shares, including the use of past performance data, funds that have merged, and incubator funds   3 the impact of such advertising on consumers and   4 recommendations to improve investor protections in mutual fund advertising and additional information necessary to ensure that investors can make informed financial decisions when purchasing shares    b report not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit a report on the results of the study conducted under subsection a to  1 the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the united states senate and   2 the committee on financial services of the house of representatives     sec 919 clarification of commission authority to require investor disclosures before purchase of investment products and services  section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o is amended by adding at the end the following  n disclosures to retail investors  1 in general notwithstanding any other provision of the securities laws, the commission may issue rules designating documents or information that shall be provided by a broker or dealer to a retail investor before the purchase of an investment product or service by the retail investor   2 considerations in developing any rules under paragraph 1 , the commission shall consider whether the rules will promote investor protection, efficiency, competition, and capital formation   3 form and contents of documents and information any documents or information designated under a rule promulgated under paragraph 1 shall  a be in a summary format and   b contain clear and concise information about  i investment objectives, strategies, costs, and risks and   ii any compensation or other financial incentive received by a broker, dealer, or other intermediary in connection with the purchase of retail investment products         sec 919a study on conflicts of interest  a in general the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study  1 to identify and examine potential conflicts of interest that exist between the staffs of the investment banking and equity and fixed income securities analyst functions within the same firm and   2 to make recommendations to congress designed to protect investors in light of such conflicts    b considerations in conducting the study under subsection a , the comptroller general shall  1 consider  a the potential for investor harm resulting from conflicts, including consideration of the forms of misconduct engaged in by the several securities firms and individuals that entered into the global analyst research settlements in 2003 also known as the global settlement   b the nature and benefits of the undertakings to which those firms agreed in enforcement proceedings, including firewalls between research and investment banking, separate reporting lines, dedicated legal and compliance staffs, allocation of budget, physical separation, compensation, employee performance evaluations, coverage decisions, limitations on soliciting investment banking business, disclosures, transparency, and other measures   c whether any such undertakings should be codified and applied permanently to securities firms, or whether the commission should adopt rules applying any such undertakings to securities firms and   d whether to recommend regulatory or legislative measures designed to mitigate possible adverse consequences to investors arising from the conflicts of interest or to enhance investor protection or confidence in the integrity of the securities markets and    2 consult with state attorneys general, state securities officials, the commission, the financial industry regulatory authority finra , nyse regulation, investor advocates, brokers, dealers, retail investors, institutional investors, and academics    c report the comptroller general shall submit a report on the results of the study required by this section to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives, not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act    sec 919b study on improved investor access to information on investment advisers and broker-dealers  a study  1 in general not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall complete a study, including recommendations, of ways to improve the access of investors to registration information including disciplinary actions, regulatory, judicial, and arbitration proceedings, and other information about registered and previously registered investment advisers, associated persons of investment advisers, brokers and dealers and their associated persons on the existing central registration depository and investment adviser registration depository systems, as well as identify additional information that should be made publicly available   2 contents the study required by subsection a shall include an analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of further centralizing access to the information contained in the 2 systems, including  a identification of those data pertinent to investors and   b the identification of the method and format for displaying and publishing such data to enhance accessibility by and utility to investors     b implementation not later than 18 months after the date of completion of the study required by subsection a , the commission shall implement any recommendations of the study    sec 919c study on financial planners and the use of financial designations  a in general the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study to evaluate  1 the effectiveness of state and federal regulations to protect investors and other consumers from individuals who hold themselves out as financial planners through the use of misleading titles, designations, or marketing materials   2 current state and federal oversight structure and regulations for financial planners and   3 legal or regulatory gaps in the regulation of financial planners and other individuals who provide or offer to provide financial planning services to consumers    b considerations in conducting the study required under subsection a , the comptroller general shall consider  1 the role of financial planners in providing advice regarding the management of financial resources, including investment planning, income tax planning, education planning, retirement planning, estate planning, and risk management   2 whether current regulations at the state and federal level provide adequate ethical and professional standards for financial planners   3 the possible risk posed to investors and other consumers by individuals who hold themselves out as financial planners or as otherwise providing financial planning services in connection with the sale of financial products, including insurance and securities   4 the possible risk posed to investors and other consumers by individuals who otherwise use titles, designations, or marketing materials in a misleading way in connection with the delivery of financial advice   6 the ability of investors and other consumers to understand licensing requirements and standards of care that apply to individuals who hold themselves out as financial planners or as otherwise providing financial planning services   7 the possible benefits to investors and other consumers of regulation and professional oversight of financial planners and   8 any other consideration that the comptroller general deems necessary or appropriate to effectively execute the study required under subsection a    c recommendations in providing recommendations for the appropriate regulation of financial planners and other individuals who provide or offer to provide financial planning services, in order to protect investors and other consumers of financial planning services, the comptroller general shall consider  1 the appropriate structure for regulation of financial planners and individuals providing financial planning services and   2 the appropriate scope of the regulations needed to protect investors and other consumers, including but not limited to the need to establish competency standards, practice standards, ethical guidelines, disciplinary authority, and transparency to investors and other consumers    d report  1 in general not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit a report on the study required under subsection a to  a the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate   b the special committee on aging of the senate and   c the committee on financial services of the house of representatives    2 content requirements the report required under paragraph 1 shall describe the findings and determinations made by the comptroller general in carrying out the study required under subsection a , including a description of the considerations, analysis, and government, public, industry, nonprofit and consumer input that the comptroller general considered to make such findings, conclusions, and legislative, regulatory, or other recommendations     sec 919d ombudsman  section 4 g of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by section 914, is amended by adding at the end the following  8 ombudsman  a appointment not later than 180 days after the date on which the first investor advocate is appointed under paragraph 2 a i , the investor advocate shall appoint an ombudsman, who shall report directly to the investor advocate   b duties the ombudsman appointed under subparagraph a shall  i act as a liaison between the commission and any retail investor in resolving problems that retail investors may have with the commission or with self-regulatory organizations   ii review and make recommendations regarding policies and procedures to encourage persons to present questions to the investor advocate regarding compliance with the securities laws and   iii establish safeguards to maintain the confidentiality of communications between the persons described in clause ii and the ombudsman    c limitation in carrying out the duties of the ombudsman under subparagraph b , the ombudsman shall utilize personnel of the commission to the extent practicable nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as replacing, altering, or diminishing the activities of any ombudsman or similar office of any other agency   d report the ombudsman shall submit a semiannual report to the investor advocate that describes the activities and evaluates the effectiveness of the ombudsman during the preceding year the investor advocate shall include the reports required under this section in the reports required to be submitted by the inspector advocate under paragraph 6        subtitle b increasing regulatory enforcement and remedies  sec 921 authority to restrict mandatory pre-dispute arbitration  a amendment to securities exchange act of 1934 section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o , as amended by this title, is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  o authority to restrict mandatory pre-dispute arbitration the commission, by rule, may prohibit, or impose conditions or limitations on the use of, agreements that require customers or clients of any broker, dealer, or municipal securities dealer to arbitrate any future dispute between them arising under the federal securities laws, the rules and regulations thereunder, or the rules of a self-regulatory organization if it finds that such prohibition, imposition of conditions, or limitations are in the public interest and for the protection of investors     b amendment to investment advisers act of 1940 section 205 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b5 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  f authority to restrict mandatory pre-dispute arbitration the commission, by rule, may prohibit, or impose conditions or limitations on the use of, agreements that require customers or clients of any investment adviser to arbitrate any future dispute between them arising under the federal securities laws, the rules and regulations thereunder, or the rules of a self-regulatory organization if it finds that such prohibition, imposition of conditions, or limitations are in the public interest and for the protection of investors      sec 922 whistleblower protection  a in general the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 21e the following  sec 21f securities whistleblower incentives and protection  a definitions in this section the following definitions shall apply  1 covered judicial or administrative action the term covered judicial or administrative action means any judicial or administrative action brought by the commission under the securities laws that results in monetary sanctions exceeding $1,000,000   2 fund the term fund means the securities and exchange commission investor protection fund   3 original information the term original information means information that  a is derived from the independent knowledge or analysis of a whistleblower   b is not known to the commission from any other source, unless the whistleblower is the original source of the information and   c is not exclusively derived from an allegation made in a judicial or administrative hearing, in a governmental report, hearing, audit, or investigation, or from the news media, unless the whistleblower is a source of the information    4 monetary sanctions the term monetary sanctions , when used with respect to any judicial or administrative action, means  a any monies, including penalties, disgorgement, and interest, ordered to be paid and   b any monies deposited into a disgorgement fund or other fund pursuant to section 308 b of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7246 b , as a result of such action or any settlement of such action    5 related action the term related action , when used with respect to any judicial or administrative action brought by the commission under the securities laws, means any judicial or administrative action brought by an entity described in subclauses i through iv of subsection h 2 d i that is based upon the original information provided by a whistleblower pursuant to subsection a that led to the successful enforcement of the commission action   6 whistleblower the term whistleblower means any individual who provides, or 2 or more individuals acting jointly who provide, information relating to a violation of the securities laws to the commission, in a manner established, by rule or regulation, by the commission    b awards  1 in general in any covered judicial or administrative action, or related action, the commission, under regulations prescribed by the commission and subject to subsection c , shall pay an award or awards to 1 or more whistleblowers who voluntarily provided original information to the commission that led to the successful enforcement of the covered judicial or administrative action, or related action, in an aggregate amount equal to  a not less than 10 percent, in total, of what has been collected of the monetary sanctions imposed in the action or related actions and   b not more than 30 percent, in total, of what has been collected of the monetary sanctions imposed in the action or related actions    2 payment of awards any amount paid under paragraph 1 shall be paid from the fund    c determination of amount of award denial of award  1 determination of amount of award  a discretion the determination of the amount of an award made under subsection b shall be in the discretion of the commission   b criteria in determining the amount of an award made under subsection b , the commission  i shall take into consideration  i the significance of the information provided by the whistleblower to the success of the covered judicial or administrative action   ii the degree of assistance provided by the whistleblower and any legal representative of the whistleblower in a covered judicial or administrative action   iii the programmatic interest of the commission in deterring violations of the securities laws by making awards to whistleblowers who provide information that lead to the successful enforcement of such laws and   iv such additional relevant factors as the commission may establish by rule or regulation and    ii shall not take into consideration the balance of the fund     2 denial of award no award under subsection b shall be made  a to any whistleblower who is, or was at the time the whistleblower acquired the original information submitted to the commission, a member, officer, or employee of  i an appropriate regulatory agency   ii the department of justice   iii a self-regulatory organization   iv the public company accounting oversight board or   v a law enforcement organization    b to any whistleblower who is convicted of a criminal violation related to the judicial or administrative action for which the whistleblower otherwise could receive an award under this section   c to any whistleblower who gains the information through the performance of an audit of financial statements required under the securities laws and for whom such submission would be contrary to the requirements of section 10a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78j1 or   d to any whistleblower who fails to submit information to the commission in such form as the commission may, by rule, require     d representation  1 permitted representation any whistleblower who makes a claim for an award under subsection b may be represented by counsel   2 required representation  a in general any whistleblower who anonymously makes a claim for an award under subsection b shall be represented by counsel if the whistleblower anonymously submits the information upon which the claim is based   b disclosure of identity prior to the payment of an award, a whistleblower shall disclose the identity of the whistleblower and provide such other information as the commission may require, directly or through counsel for the whistleblower     e no contract necessary no contract with the commission is necessary for any whistleblower to receive an award under subsection b , unless otherwise required by the commission by rule or regulation   f appeals any determination made under this section, including whether, to whom, or in what amount to make awards, shall be in the discretion of the commission any such determination, except the determination of the amount of an award if the award was made in accordance with subsection b , may be appealed to the appropriate court of appeals of the united states not more than 30 days after the determination is issued by the commission the court shall review the determination made by the commission in accordance with section 706 of title 5, united states code   g investor protection fund  1 fund established there is established in the treasury of the united states a fund to be known as the securities and exchange commission investor protection fund   2 use of fund the fund shall be available to the commission, without further appropriation or fiscal year limitation, for  a paying awards to whistleblowers as provided in subsection b and   b funding the activities of the inspector general of the commission under section 4 i    3 deposits and credits  a in general there shall be deposited into or credited to the fund an amount equal to  i any monetary sanction collected by the commission in any judicial or administrative action brought by the commission under the securities laws that is not added to a disgorgement fund or other fund under section 308 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7246 or otherwise distributed to victims of a violation of the securities laws, or the rules and regulations thereunder, underlying such action, unless the balance of the fund at the time the monetary sanction is collected exceeds $300,000,000   ii any monetary sanction added to a disgorgement fund or other fund under section 308 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7246 that is not distributed to the victims for whom the fund was established, unless the balance of the disgorgement fund at the time the determination is made not to distribute the monetary sanction to such victims exceeds $200,000,000 and   iii all income from investments made under paragraph 4    b additional amounts if the amounts deposited into or credited to the fund under subparagraph a are not sufficient to satisfy an award made under subsection b , there shall be deposited into or credited to the fund an amount equal to the unsatisfied portion of the award from any monetary sanction collected by the commission in the covered judicial or administrative action on which the award is based    4 investments  a amounts in fund may be invested the commission may request the secretary of the treasury to invest the portion of the fund that is not, in the discretion of the commission, required to meet the current needs of the fund   b eligible investments investments shall be made by the secretary of the treasury in obligations of the united states or obligations that are guaranteed as to principal and interest by the united states, with maturities suitable to the needs of the fund as determined by the commission on the record   c interest and proceeds credited the interest on, and the proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any obligations held in the fund shall be credited to the fund    5 reports to congress not later than october 30 of each fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of this subsection, the commission shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate, and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on  a the whistleblower award program, established under this section, including  i a description of the number of awards granted and   ii the types of cases in which awards were granted during the preceding fiscal year    b the balance of the fund at the beginning of the preceding fiscal year   c the amounts deposited into or credited to the fund during the preceding fiscal year   d the amount of earnings on investments made under paragraph 4 during the preceding fiscal year   e the amount paid from the fund during the preceding fiscal year to whistleblowers pursuant to subsection b   f the balance of the fund at the end of the preceding fiscal year and   g a complete set of audited financial statements, including  i a balance sheet   ii income statement and   iii cash flow analysis      h protection of whistleblowers  1 prohibition against retaliation  a in general no employer may discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, harass, directly or indirectly, or in any other manner discriminate against, a whistleblower in the terms and conditions of employment because of any lawful act done by the whistleblower  i in providing information to the commission in accordance with this section   ii in initiating, testifying in, or assisting in any investigation or judicial or administrative action of the commission based upon or related to such information or   iii in making disclosures that are required or protected under the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7201 et seq , the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq , including section 10a m of such act 15 usc 78f m , section 1513 e of title 18, united states code, and any other law, rule, or regulation subject to the jurisdiction of the commission    b enforcement  i cause of action an individual who alleges discharge or other discrimination in violation of subparagraph a may bring an action under this subsection in the appropriate district court of the united states for the relief provided in subparagraph c   ii subpoenas a subpoena requiring the attendance of a witness at a trial or hearing conducted under this section may be served at any place in the united states   iii statute of limitations  i in general an action under this subsection may not be brought  aa more than 6 years after the date on which the violation of subparagraph a occurred or   bb more than 3 years after the date when facts material to the right of action are known or reasonably should have been known by the employee alleging a violation of subparagraph a    ii required action within 10 years notwithstanding subclause i , an action under this subsection may not in any circumstance be brought more than 10 years after the date on which the violation occurs     c relief relief for an individual prevailing in an action brought under subparagraph b shall include  i reinstatement with the same seniority status that the individual would have had, but for the discrimination   ii 2 times the amount of back pay otherwise owed to the individual, with interest and   iii compensation for litigation costs, expert witness fees, and reasonable attorneys fees     2 confidentiality  a in general except as provided in subparagraphs b and c , the commission and any officer or employee of the commission shall not disclose any information, including information provided by a whistleblower to the commission, which could reasonably be expected to reveal the identity of a whistleblower, except in accordance with the provisions of section 552a of title 5, united states code, unless and until required to be disclosed to a defendant or respondent in connection with a public proceeding instituted by the commission or any entity described in subparagraph c for purposes of section 552 of title 5, united states code, this paragraph shall be considered a statute described in subsection b 3 b of such section   b exempted statute for purposes of section 552 of title 5, united states code, this paragraph shall be considered a statute described in subsection b 3 b of such section 552   c rule of construction nothing in this section is intended to limit, or shall be construed to limit, the ability of the attorney general to present such evidence to a grand jury or to share such evidence with potential witnesses or defendants in the course of an ongoing criminal investigation   d availability to government agencies  i in general without the loss of its status as confidential in the hands of the commission, all information referred to in subparagraph a may, in the discretion of the commission, when determined by the commission to be necessary to accomplish the purposes of this act and to protect investors, be made available to  i the attorney general of the united states   ii an appropriate regulatory authority   iii a self-regulatory organization   iv a state attorney general in connection with any criminal investigation   v any appropriate state regulatory authority   vi the public company accounting oversight board   vii a foreign securities authority and   viii a foreign law enforcement authority    ii confidentiality  i in general each of the entities described in subclauses i through vi of clause i shall maintain such information as confidential in accordance with the requirements established under subparagraph a   ii foreign authorities each of the entities described in subclauses vii and viii of clause i shall maintain such information in accordance with such assurances of confidentiality as the commission determines appropriate      3 rights retained nothing in this section shall be deemed to diminish the rights, privileges, or remedies of any whistleblower under any federal or state law, or under any collective bargaining agreement    i provision of false information a whistleblower shall not be entitled to an award under this section if the whistleblower  1 knowingly and willfully makes any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation or   2 uses any false writing or document knowing the writing or document contains any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry    j rulemaking authority the commission shall have the authority to issue such rules and regulations as may be necessary or appropriate to implement the provisions of this section consistent with the purposes of this section      b protection for employees of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations section 1514a a of title 18, united states code, is amended  1 by inserting or nationally recognized statistical rating organization as defined in section 3 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c , after 78o d , and   2 by inserting or nationally recognized statistical rating organization after such company    c section 1514a of title 18, united states code  1 statute of limitations jury trial section 1514a b 2 of title 18, united states code, is amended  a in subparagraph d  i by striking 90 and inserting 180 and   ii by striking the period at the end and inserting , or after the date on which the employee became aware of the violation and    b by adding at the end the following  e jury trial a party to an action brought under paragraph 1 b shall be entitled to trial by jury      2 private securities litigation witnesses nonenforceability information section 1514a of title 18, united states code, is amended by adding at the end the following  e nonenforceability of certain provisions waiving rights and remedies or requiring arbitration of disputes  1 waiver of rights and remedies the rights and remedies provided for in this section may not be waived by any agreement, policy form, or condition of employment, including by a predispute arbitration agreement   2 predispute arbitration agreements no predispute arbitration agreement shall be valid or enforceable, if the agreement requires arbitration of a dispute arising under this section       d study of whistleblower protection program  1 study the inspector general of the commission shall conduct a study of the whistleblower protections established under the amendments made by this section, including  a whether the final rules and regulation issued under the amendments made by this section have made the whistleblower protection program referred to in this subsection as the program clearly defined and user-friendly   b whether the program is promoted on the website of the commission and has been widely publicized   c whether the commission is prompt in  i responding to  i information provided by whistleblowers and   ii applications for awards filed by whistleblowers    ii updating whistleblowers about the status of their applications and   iii otherwise communicating with the interested parties    d whether the minimum and maximum reward levels are adequate to entice whistleblowers to come forward with information and whether the reward levels are so high as to encourage illegitimate whistleblower claims   e whether the appeals process has been unduly burdensome for the commission   f whether the funding mechanism for the investor protection fund is adequate   g whether, in the interest of protecting investors and identifying and preventing fraud, it would be useful for congress to consider empowering whistleblowers or other individuals, who have already attempted to pursue the case through the commission, to have a private right of action to bring suit based on the facts of the same case, on behalf of the government and themselves, against persons who have committee securities fraud   h  i whether the exemption under section 552 b 3 of title 5 known as the freedom of information act established in section 21f h 2 a of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this act, aids whistleblowers in disclosing information to the commission   ii what impact the exemption described in clause i has had on the ability of the public to access information about the regulation and enforcement by the commission of securities and   iii any recommendations on whether the exemption described in clause i should remain in effect and    i such other matters as the inspector general deems appropriate    2 report not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this act, the inspector general shall  a submit a report on the findings of the study required under paragraph 1 to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house and   b make the report described in subparagraph a available to the public through publication of the report on the website of the commission      sec 923 conforming amendments for whistleblower protection  a in general  1 securities act of 1933 section 20 d 3 a of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77t d 3 a is amended by inserting and section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934 after the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002   2 investment company act of 1940 section 42 e 3 a of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a41 e 3 a is amended by inserting and section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934 after the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002   3 investment advisers act of 1940 section 209 e 3 a of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b9 e 3 a is amended by inserting and section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934 after the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002    b securities exchange act  1 section 21 section 21 d 3 c i of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u d 3 c i is amended by inserting and section 21f of this title after the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002   2 section 21a section 21a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u1 is amended  a in subsection d 1 by  i striking subject to subsection e and   ii inserting and section 21f of this title after the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002    b by striking subsection e and   c by redesignating subsections f and g as subsections e and f , respectively      sec 924 implementation and transition provisions for whistleblower protection  a implementing rules the commission shall issue final regulations implementing the provisions of section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this subtitle, not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this act   b original information information provided to the commission in writing by a whistleblower shall not lose the status of original information as defined in section 21f a 3 of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this subtitle solely because the whistleblower provided the information prior to the effective date of the regulations, if the information is provided by the whistleblower after the date of enactment of this subtitle   c awards a whistleblower may receive an award pursuant to section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this subtitle, regardless of whether any violation of a provision of the securities laws, or a rule or regulation thereunder, underlying the judicial or administrative action upon which the award is based, occurred prior to the date of enactment of this subtitle   d administration and enforcement the securities and exchange commission shall establish a separate office within the commission to administer and enforce the provisions of section 21f of the securities exchange act of 1934 as add by section 922 a such office shall report annually to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives on its activities, whistleblower complaints, and the response of the commission to such complaints    sec 925 collateral bars  a securities exchange act of 1934  1 section 15 section 15 b 6 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o b 6 a is amended by striking 12 months, or bar such person from being associated with a broker or dealer, and inserting 12 months, or bar any such person from being associated with a broker, dealer, investment adviser, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, transfer agent, or nationally recognized statistical rating organization,   2 section 15b section 15b c 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 c 4 is amended by striking twelve months or bar any such person from being associated with a municipal securities dealer, and inserting 12 months or bar any such person from being associated with a broker, dealer, investment adviser, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, transfer agent, or nationally recognized statistical rating organization,   3 section 17a section 17a c 4 c of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78q1 c 4 c is amended by striking twelve months or bar any such person from being associated with the transfer agent, and inserting 12 months or bar any such person from being associated with any transfer agent, broker, dealer, investment adviser, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, or nationally recognized statistical rating organization,    b investment advisers act of 1940 section 203 f of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b3 f is amended by striking twelve months or bar any such person from being associated with an investment adviser, and inserting 12 months or bar any such person from being associated with an investment adviser, broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, transfer agent, or nationally recognized statistical rating organization,    sec 926 disqualifying felons and other bad actors from regulation d offerings  not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall issue rules for the disqualification of offerings and sales of securities made under section 230506 of title 17, code of federal regulations, that  1 are substantially similar to the provisions of section 230262 of title 17, code of federal regulations, or any successor thereto and   2 disqualify any offering or sale of securities by a person that  a is subject to a final order of a state securities commission or an agency or officer of a state performing like functions , a state authority that supervises or examines banks, savings associations, or credit unions, a state insurance commission or an agency or officer of a state performing like functions , an appropriate federal banking agency, or the national credit union administration, that  i bars the person from  i association with an entity regulated by such commission, authority, agency, or officer   ii engaging in the business of securities, insurance, or banking or   iii engaging in savings association or credit union activities or    ii constitutes a final order based on a violation of any law or regulation that prohibits fraudulent, manipulative, or deceptive conduct within the 10-year period ending on the date of the filing of the offer or sale or    b has been convicted of any felony or misdemeanor in connection with the purchase or sale of any security or involving the making of any false filing with the commission      sec 927 equal treatment of self-regulatory organization rules  section 29 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78cc a is amended by striking an exchange required thereby and inserting a self-regulatory organization,    sec 928 clarification that section 205 of the investment advisers act of 1940 does not apply to state-registered advisers  section 205 a of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b5 a is amended, in the matter preceding paragraph 1  1 by striking , unless exempt from registration pursuant to section 203 b , and inserting registered or required to be registered with the commission   2 by striking make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce, directly or indirectly, to and   3 by striking to after in any way     sec 929 unlawful margin lending  section 7 c 1 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78g c 1 a is amended by striking and and inserting or    sec 929a protection for employees of subsidiaries and affiliates of publicly traded companies  section 1514a of title 18, united states code, is amended by inserting including any subsidiary or affiliate whose financial information is included in the consolidated financial statements of such company after the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o d    sec 929b fair fund amendments  section 308 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7246 a is amended  1 by striking subsection a and inserting the following  a civil penalties to be used for the relief of victims if, in any judicial or administrative action brought by the commission under the securities laws, the commission obtains a civil penalty against any person for a violation of such laws, or such person agrees, in settlement of any such action, to such civil penalty, the amount of such civil penalty shall, on the motion or at the direction of the commission, be added to and become part of a disgorgement fund or other fund established for the benefit of the victims of such violation     2 in subsection b  a by striking for a disgorgement fund described in subsection a and inserting for a disgorgement fund or other fund described in subsection a and   b by striking in the disgorgement fund and inserting in such fund and    3 by striking subsection e     sec 929c increasing the borrowing limit on treasury loans  section 4 h of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78ddd h is amended in the first sentence, by striking $1,000,000,000 and inserting $2,500,000,000    sec 929d lost and stolen securities  section 17 f 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78q f 1 is amended  1 in subparagraph a , by striking missing, lost, counterfeit, or stolen securities and inserting securities that are missing, lost, counterfeit, stolen, or cancelled and   2 in subparagraph b , by striking or stolen and inserting stolen, cancelled, or reported in such other manner as the commission, by rule, may prescribe     sec 929e nationwide service of subpoenas  a securities act of 1933 section 22 a of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77v a is amended by inserting after the second sentence the following in any action or proceeding instituted by the commission under this title in a united states district court for any judicial district, a subpoena issued to compel the attendance of a witness or the production of documents or tangible things or both at a hearing or trial may be served at any place within the united states rule 45 c 3 a ii of the federal rules of civil procedure shall not apply to a subpoena issued under the preceding sentence   b securities exchange act of 1934 section 27 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78aa is amended by inserting after the third sentence the following in any action or proceeding instituted by the commission under this title in a united states district court for any judicial district, a subpoena issued to compel the attendance of a witness or the production of documents or tangible things or both at a hearing or trial may be served at any place within the united states rule 45 c 3 a ii of the federal rules of civil procedure shall not apply to a subpoena issued under the preceding sentence   c investment company act of 1940 section 44 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a43 is amended by inserting after the fourth sentence the following in any action or proceeding instituted by the commission under this title in a united states district court for any judicial district, a subpoena issued to compel the attendance of a witness or the production of documents or tangible things or both at a hearing or trial may be served at any place within the united states rule 45 c 3 a ii of the federal rules of civil procedure shall not apply to a subpoena issued under the preceding sentence   d investment advisers act of 1940 section 214 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b14 is amended by inserting after the third sentence the following in any action or proceeding instituted by the commission under this title in a united states district court for any judicial district, a subpoena issued to compel the attendance of a witness or the production of documents or tangible things or both at a hearing or trial may be served at any place within the united states rule 45 c 3 a ii of the federal rules of civil procedure shall not apply to a subpoena issued under the preceding sentence    sec 929f formerly associated persons  a member or employee of the municipal securities rulemaking board section 15b c 8 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 c 8 is amended by striking any member or employee and inserting any person who is, or at the time of the alleged violation or abuse was, a member or employee   b person associated with a government securities broker or dealer section 15c c of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o5 c is amended  1 in paragraph 1 c , by striking any person associated, or seeking to become associated, and inserting any person who is, or at the time of the alleged misconduct was, associated or seeking to become associated and   2 in paragraph 2  a in subparagraph a , by inserting , seeking to become associated, or, at the time of the alleged misconduct, associated or seeking to become associated after any person associated and   b in subparagraph b , by inserting , seeking to become associated, or, at the time of the alleged misconduct, associated or seeking to become associated after any person associated     c person associated with a member of a national securities exchange or registered securities association section 21 a 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u a 1 is amended, in the first sentence, by inserting , or, as to any act or practice, or omission to act, while associated with a member, formerly associated after member or a person associated   d participant of a registered clearing agency section 21 a 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u a 1 is amended, in the first sentence, by inserting or, as to any act or practice, or omission to act, while a participant, was a participant, after in which such person is a participant,   e officer or director of a self-regulatory organization section 19 h 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78s h 4 is amended  1 by striking any officer or director and inserting any person who is, or at the time of the alleged misconduct was, an officer or director and   2 by striking such officer or director and inserting such person    f officer or director of an investment company section 36 a of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a35 a is amended  1 by striking a person serving or acting and inserting a person who is, or at the time of the alleged misconduct was, serving or acting and   2 by striking such person so serves or acts and inserting such person so serves or acts, or at the time of the alleged misconduct, so served or acted    g person associated with a public accounting firm  1 sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 amendment section 2 a 9 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7201 9 is amended by adding at the end the following  c investigative and enforcement authority for purposes of sections 3 c , 101 c , 105, and 107 c and the rules of the board and commission issued thereunder, except to the extent specifically excepted by such rules, the terms defined in subparagraph a shall include any person associated, seeking to become associated, or formerly associated with a public accounting firm, except that  i the authority to conduct an investigation of such person under section 105 b shall apply only with respect to any act or practice, or omission to act, by the person while such person was associated or seeking to become associated with a registered public accounting firm and   ii the authority to commence a disciplinary proceeding under section 105 c 1 , or impose sanctions under section 105 c 4 , against such person shall apply only with respect to  i conduct occurring while such person was associated or seeking to become associated with a registered public accounting firm or   ii non-cooperation, as described in section 105 b 3 , with respect to a demand in a board investigation for testimony, documents, or other information relating to a period when such person was associated or seeking to become associated with a registered public accounting firm       2 securities exchange act of 1934 amendment section 21 a 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u a 1 is amended by striking or a person associated with such a firm and inserting , a person associated with such a firm, or, as to any act, practice, or omission to act, while associated with such firm, a person formerly associated with such a firm    h supervisory personnel of an audit firm section 105 c 6 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 c 6 is amended  1 in subparagraph a , by striking the supervisory personnel and inserting any person who is, or at the time of the alleged failure reasonably to supervise was, a supervisory person and   2 in subparagraph b  a by striking no associated person and inserting no current or former supervisory person and   b by striking any other person and inserting any associated person     i member of the public company accounting oversight board section 107 d 3 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7217 d 3 is amended by striking any member and inserting any person who is, or at the time of the alleged misconduct was, a member    sec 929g streamlined hiring authority for market specialists  a appointment authority section 3114 of title 5, united states code, is amended by striking the section heading and all that follows through the end of subsection a and inserting the following  sec 3114 appointment of candidates to certain positions in the competitive service by the securities and exchange commission  a applicability this section applies with respect to any position of accountant, economist, and securities compliance examiner at the commission that is in the competitive service, and any position at the commission in the competitive service that requires specialized knowledge of financial and capital market formation or regulation, financial market structures or surveillance, or information technology      b clerical amendment the table of sections for chapter 31 of title 5, united states code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 3114 and inserting the following    c pay authority the commission may set the rate of pay for experts and consultants appointed under the authority of section 3109 of title 5, united states code, in the same manner in which it sets the rate of pay for employees of the commission    sec 929h sipc reforms  a increasing the cash limit of protection section 9 of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78fff3 is amended  1 in subsection a 1 , by striking $100,000 for each such customer and inserting the standard maximum cash advance amount for each such customer, as determined in accordance with subsection d and   2 by adding the following new subsections  d standard maximum cash advance amount defined for purposes of this section, the term standard maximum cash advance amount means $250,000, as such amount may be adjusted after december 31, 2010, as provided under subsection e   e inflation adjustment  1 in general not later than january 1, 2011, and every 5 years thereafter, and subject to the approval of the commission as provided under section 3 e 2 , the board of directors of sipc shall determine whether an inflation adjustment to the standard maximum cash advance amount is appropriate if the board of directors of sipc determines such an adjustment is appropriate, then the standard maximum cash advance amount shall be an amount equal to  a $250,000 multiplied by   b the ratio of the annual value of the personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index or any successor index thereto , published by the department of commerce, for the calendar year preceding the year in which such determination is made, to the published annual value of such index for the calendar year preceding the year in which this subsection was enacted  the index values used in calculations under this paragraph shall be, as of the date of the calculation, the values most recently published by the department of commerce   2 rounding if the standard maximum cash advance amount determined under paragraph 1 for any period is not a multiple of $10,000, the amount so determined shall be rounded down to the nearest $10,000   3 publication and report to the congress not later than april 5 of any calendar year in which a determination is required to be made under paragraph 1  a the commission shall publish in the federal register the standard maximum cash advance amount and   b the board of directors of sipc shall submit a report to the congress stating the standard maximum cash advance amount    4 implementation period any adjustment to the standard maximum cash advance amount shall take effect on january 1 of the year immediately succeeding the calendar year in which such adjustment is made   5 inflation adjustment considerations in making any determination under paragraph 1 to increase the standard maximum cash advance amount, the board of directors of sipc shall consider  a the overall state of the fund and the economic conditions affecting members of sipc   b the potential problems affecting members of sipc and   c such other factors as the board of directors of sipc may determine appropriate        b liquidation of a carrying broker-dealer section 5 a 3 of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78eee a 3 is amended  1 by striking the undesignated matter immediately following subparagraph b   2 in subparagraph a , by striking any member of sipc and inserting the member   3 in subparagraph b , by striking the comma at the end and inserting a period   4 by striking if sipc and inserting the following  a in general sipc may, upon notice to a member of sipc, file an application for a protective decree with any court of competent jurisdiction specified in section 21 e or 27 of the securities exchange act of 1934, except that no such application shall be filed with respect to a member, the only customers of which are persons whose claims could not be satisfied by sipc advances pursuant to section 9, if sipc   and   5 by adding at the end the following  b consent required no member of sipc that has a customer may enter into an insolvency, receivership, or bankruptcy proceeding, under federal or state law, without the specific consent of sipc, except as provided in title ii of the dodd-frank wall street reform and consumer protection act       sec 929i protecting confidentiality of materials submitted to the commission  a securities exchange act of 1934 section 24 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78x is amended  1 in subsection d , by striking subsection e and inserting subsection f   2 by redesignating subsection e as subsection f and   3 by inserting after subsection d the following  e records obtained from registered persons  1 in general except as provided in subsection f , the commission shall not be compelled to disclose records or information obtained pursuant to section 17 b , or records or information based upon or derived from such records or information, if such records or information have been obtained by the commission for use in furtherance of the purposes of this title, including surveillance, risk assessments, or other regulatory and oversight activities   2 treatment of information for purposes of section 552 of title 5, united states code, this subsection shall be considered a statute described in subsection b 3 b of such section 552 collection of information pursuant to section 17 shall be an administrative action involving an agency against specific individuals or agencies pursuant to section 3518 c 1 of title 44, united states code       b investment company act of 1940 section 31 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a-30 is amended  1 by striking subsection c and inserting the following  c limitations on disclosure by commission notwithstanding any other provision of law, the commission shall not be compelled to disclose any records or information provided to the commission under this section, or records or information based upon or derived from such records or information, if such records or information have been obtained by the commission for use in furtherance of the purposes of this title, including surveillance, risk assessments, or other regulatory and oversight activities nothing in this subsection authorizes the commission to withhold information from the congress or prevent the commission from complying with a request for information from any other federal department or agency requesting the information for purposes within the scope of jurisdiction of that department or agency, or complying with an order of a court of the united states in an action brought by the united states or the commission for purposes of section 552 of title 5, united states code, this section shall be considered a statute described in subsection b 3 b of such section 552 collection of information pursuant to section 31 shall be an administrative action involving an agency against specific individuals or agencies pursuant to section 3518 c 1 of title 44, united states code     2 by striking subsection d and   3 by redesignating subsections e and f as subsections d and e , respectively    c investment advisers act of 1940 section 210 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b-10 is amended by adding at the end the following  d limitations on disclosure by the commission notwithstanding any other provision of law, the commission shall not be compelled to disclose any records or information provided to the commission under section 204, or records or information based upon or derived from such records or information, if such records or information have been obtained by the commission for use in furtherance of the purposes of this title, including surveillance, risk assessments, or other regulatory and oversight activities nothing in this subsection authorizes the commission to withhold information from the congress or prevent the commission from complying with a request for information from any other federal department or agency requesting the information for purposes within the scope of jurisdiction of that department or agency, or complying with an order of a court of the united states in an action brought by the united states or the commission for purposes of section 552 of title 5, united states code, this subsection shall be considered a statute described in subsection b 3 b of such section 552 collection of information pursuant to section 204 shall be an administrative action involving an agency against specific individuals or agencies pursuant to section 3518 c 1 of title 44, united states code      sec 929j expansion of audit information to be produced and exchanged  section 106 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7216 is amended  1 by striking subsection b and inserting the following  b production of documents  1 production by foreign firms if a foreign public accounting firm performs material services upon which a registered public accounting firm relies in the conduct of an audit or interim review, issues an audit report, performs audit work, or conducts interim reviews, the foreign public accounting firm shall  a produce the audit work papers of the foreign public accounting firm and all other documents of the firm related to any such audit work or interim review to the commission or the board, upon request of the commission or the board and   b be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of the united states for purposes of enforcement of any request for such documents    2 other production any registered public accounting firm that relies, in whole or in part, on the work of a foreign public accounting firm in issuing an audit report, performing audit work, or conducting an interim review, shall  a produce the audit work papers of the foreign public accounting firm and all other documents related to any such work in response to a request for production by the commission or the board and   b secure the agreement of any foreign public accounting firm to such production, as a condition of the reliance by the registered public accounting firm on the work of that foreign public accounting firm       2 by redesignating subsection d as subsection g and   3 by inserting after subsection c the following  d service of requests or process  1 in general any foreign public accounting firm that performs work for a domestic registered public accounting firm shall furnish to the domestic registered public accounting firm a written irrevocable consent and power of attorney that designates the domestic registered public accounting firm as an agent upon whom may be served any request by the commission or the board under this section or upon whom may be served any process, pleadings, or other papers in any action brought to enforce this section   2 specific audit work any foreign public accounting firm that performs material services upon which a registered public accounting firm relies in the conduct of an audit or interim review, issues an audit report, performs audit work, or, performs interim reviews, shall designate to the commission or the board an agent in the united states upon whom may be served any request by the commission or the board under this section or upon whom may be served any process, pleading, or other papers in any action brought to enforce this section    e sanctions a willful refusal to comply, in whole in or in part, with any request by the commission or the board under this section, shall be deemed a violation of this act   f other means of satisfying production obligations notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, the staff of the commission or the board may allow a foreign public accounting firm that is subject to this section to meet production obligations under this section through alternate means, such as through foreign counterparts of the commission or the board       sec 929k sharing privileged information with other authorities  section 24 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78x is amended  1 in subsection d , as amended by subsection d 1 a , by striking subsection f and inserting subsection g   2 in subsection e , as added by subsection d 1 c , by striking subsection f and inserting subsection g   3 by redesignating subsection f as subsection g and   4 by inserting after subsection e the following  f sharing privileged information with other authorities  1 privileged information provided by the commission the commission shall not be deemed to have waived any privilege applicable to any information by transferring that information to or permitting that information to be used by  a any agency as defined in section 6 of title 18, united states code   b the public company accounting oversight board   c any self-regulatory organization   d any foreign securities authority   e any foreign law enforcement authority or   f any state securities or law enforcement authority    2 nondisclosure of privileged information provided to the commission the commission shall not be compelled to disclose privileged information obtained from any foreign securities authority, or foreign law enforcement authority, if the authority has in good faith determined and represented to the commission that the information is privileged   3 nonwaiver of privileged information provided to the commission  a in general federal agencies, state securities and law enforcement authorities, self-regulatory organizations, and the public company accounting oversight board shall not be deemed to have waived any privilege applicable to any information by transferring that information to or permitting that information to be used by the commission   b exception the provisions of subparagraph a shall not apply to a self-regulatory organization or the public company accounting oversight board with respect to information used by the commission in an action against such organization    4 definitions for purposes of this subsection  a the term privilege includes any work-product privilege, attorney-client privilege, governmental privilege, or other privilege recognized under federal, state, or foreign law   b the term foreign law enforcement authority means any foreign authority that is empowered under foreign law to detect, investigate or prosecute potential violations of law and   c the term state securities or law enforcement authority means the authority of any state or territory that is empowered under state or territory law to detect, investigate, or prosecute potential violations of law         sec 929l enhanced application of antifraud provisions  the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended  1 in section 9  a by striking registered on a national securities exchange each place that term appears and inserting other than a government security   b in subsection b , by striking by use of any facility of a national securities exchange, and   c in subsection c , by inserting after unlawful for any the following broker, dealer, or    2 in section 10 a 1 , by striking registered on a national securities exchange and inserting other than a government security and   3 in section 15 c 1 a , by striking otherwise than on a national securities exchange of which it is a member     sec 929m aiding and abetting authority under the securities act and the investment company act  a under the securities act of 1933 section 15 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77o is amended  1 by striking every person who and inserting a and controlling personsevery person who   2 by adding at the end the following  b prosecution of persons who aid and abet violations for purposes of any action brought by the commission under subparagraph b or d of section 20, any person that knowingly or recklessly provides substantial assistance to another person in violation of a provision of this act, or of any rule or regulation issued under this act, shall be deemed to be in violation of such provision to the same extent as the person to whom such assistance is provided      b under the investment company act of 1940 section 48 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a48 is amended by redesignating subsection b as subsection c and inserting after subsection a the following  b for purposes of any action brought by the commission under subsection d or e of section 42, any person that knowingly or recklessly provides substantial assistance to another person in violation of a provision of this act, or of any rule or regulation issued under this act, shall be deemed to be in violation of such provision to the same extent as the person to whom such assistance is provided      sec 929n authority to impose penalties for aiding and abetting violations of the investment advisers act  section 209 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b9 is amended by inserting at the end the following new subsection  f aiding and abetting for purposes of any action brought by the commission under subsection e , any person that knowingly or recklessly has aided, abetted, counseled, commanded, induced, or procured a violation of any provision of this act, or of any rule, regulation, or order hereunder, shall be deemed to be in violation of such provision, rule, regulation, or order to the same extent as the person that committed such violation      sec 929o aiding and abetting standard of knowledge satisfied by recklessness  section 20 e of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78t e is amended by inserting or recklessly after knowingly    sec 929p strengthening enforcement by the commission  a authority to impose civil penalties in cease and desist proceedings  1 under the securities act of 1933 section 8a of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77h1 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  g authority to impose money penalties  1 grounds in any cease-and-desist proceeding under subsection a , the commission may impose a civil penalty on a person if the commission finds, on the record, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that  a such person  i is violating or has violated any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title or   ii is or was a cause of the violation of any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation thereunder and    b such penalty is in the public interest    2 maximum amount of penalty  a first tier the maximum amount of a penalty for each act or omission described in paragraph 1 shall be $7,500 for a natural person or $75,000 for any other person   b second tier notwithstanding subparagraph a , the maximum amount of penalty for each such act or omission shall be $75,000 for a natural person or $375,000 for any other person, if the act or omission described in paragraph 1 involved fraud, deceit, manipulation, or deliberate or reckless disregard of a regulatory requirement   c third tier notwithstanding subparagraphs a and b , the maximum amount of penalty for each such act or omission shall be $150,000 for a natural person or $725,000 for any other person, if  i the act or omission described in paragraph 1 involved fraud, deceit, manipulation, or deliberate or reckless disregard of a regulatory requirement and   ii such act or omission directly or indirectly resulted in  i substantial losses or created a significant risk of substantial losses to other persons or   ii substantial pecuniary gain to the person who committed the act or omission      3 evidence concerning ability to pay in any proceeding in which the commission may impose a penalty under this section, a respondent may present evidence of the ability of the respondent to pay such penalty the commission may, in its discretion, consider such evidence in determining whether such penalty is in the public interest such evidence may relate to the extent of the ability of the respondent to continue in business and the collectability of a penalty, taking into account any other claims of the united states or third parties upon the assets of the respondent and the amount of the assets of the respondent      2 under the securities exchange act of 1934 section 21b a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u2 a is amended  a by striking the matter following paragraph 4   b in the matter preceding paragraph 1 , by inserting after opportunity for hearing, the following that such penalty is in the public interest and   c by redesignating paragraphs 1 through 4 as subparagraphs a through d , respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly   d by striking in any proceeding and inserting the following  1 in general in any proceeding   and   e by adding at the end the following  2 cease-and-desist proceedings in any proceeding instituted under section 21c against any person, the commission may impose a civil penalty, if the commission finds, on the record after notice and opportunity for hearing, that such person  a is violating or has violated any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title or   b is or was a cause of the violation of any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title       3 under the investment company act of 1940 section 9 d 1 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a9 d 1 is amended  a by striking the matter following subparagraph c   b in the matter preceding subparagraph a , by inserting after opportunity for hearing, the following that such penalty is in the public interest, and   c by redesignating subparagraphs a through c as clauses i through iii , respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly   d by striking in any proceeding and inserting the following  a in general in any proceeding   and   e by adding at the end the following  b cease-and-desist proceedings in any proceeding instituted pursuant to subsection f against any person, the commission may impose a civil penalty if the commission finds, on the record, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that such person  i is violating or has violated any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title or   ii is or was a cause of the violation of any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title       4 under the investment advisers act of 1940 section 203 i 1 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b3 i 1 is amended  a by striking the matter following subparagraph d   b in the matter preceding subparagraph a , by inserting after opportunity for hearing, the following that such penalty is in the public interest and   c by redesignating subparagraphs a through d as clauses i through iv , respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly   d by striking in any proceeding and inserting the following  a in general in any proceeding   and   e by adding at the end the following new subparagraph  b cease-and-desist proceedings in any proceeding instituted pursuant to subsection k against any person, the commission may impose a civil penalty if the commission finds, on the record, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that such person  i is violating or has violated any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title or   ii is or was a cause of the violation of any provision of this title, or any rule or regulation issued under this title        b extraterritorial jurisdiction of the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws  1 under the securities act of 1933 section 22 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77v a is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  c extraterritorial jurisdiction the district courts of the united states and the united states courts of any territory shall have jurisdiction of an action or proceeding brought or instituted by the commission or the united states alleging a violation of section 17 a involving  1 conduct within the united states that constitutes significant steps in furtherance of the violation, even if the securities transaction occurs outside the united states and involves only foreign investors or   2 conduct occurring outside the united states that has a foreseeable substantial effect within the united states      2 under the securities exchange act of 1934 section 27 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78aa is amended  a by striking the district and inserting the following  a in general the district   and   b by adding at the end the following new subsection  b extraterritorial jurisdiction the district courts of the united states and the united states courts of any territory shall have jurisdiction of an action or proceeding brought or instituted by the commission or the united states alleging a violation of the antifraud provisions of this title involving  1 conduct within the united states that constitutes significant steps in furtherance of the violation, even if the securities transaction occurs outside the united states and involves only foreign investors or   2 conduct occurring outside the united states that has a foreseeable substantial effect within the united states       3 under the investment advisers act of 1940 section 214 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b14 is amended  a by striking the district and inserting the following  a in general the district   and   b by adding at the end the following new subsection  b extraterritorial jurisdiction the district courts of the united states and the united states courts of any territory shall have jurisdiction of an action or proceeding brought or instituted by the commission or the united states alleging a violation of section 206 involving  1 conduct within the united states that constitutes significant steps in furtherance of the violation, even if the violation is committed by a foreign adviser and involves only foreign investors or   2 conduct occurring outside the united states that has a foreseeable substantial effect within the united states        c control person liability under the securities exchange act of 1934 section 20 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78t a is amended by inserting after controlled person is liable the following including to the commission in any action brought under paragraph 1 or 3 of section 21 d    sec 929q revision to recordkeeping rule  a investment company act of 1940 amendments section 31 of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a30 is amended  1 in subsection a 1 , by adding at the end the following each person having custody or use of the securities, deposits, or credits of a registered investment company shall maintain and preserve all records that relate to the custody or use by such person of the securities, deposits, or credits of the registered investment company for such period or periods as the commission, by rule or regulation, may prescribe, as necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors and   2 in subsection b , by adding at the end the following  4 records of persons with custody or use  a in general records of persons having custody or use of the securities, deposits, or credits of a registered investment company that relate to such custody or use, are subject at any time, or from time to time, to such reasonable periodic, special, or other examinations and other information and document requests by representatives of the commission, as the commission deems necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors   b certain persons subject to other regulation any person that is subject to regulation and examination by a federal financial institution regulatory agency as such term is defined under section 212 c 2 of title 18, united states code may satisfy any examination request, information request, or document request described under subparagraph a , by providing to the commission a detailed listing, in writing, of the securities, deposits, or credits of the registered investment company within the custody or use of such person       b investment advisers act of 1940 amendment section 204 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b4 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  d records of persons with custody or use  1 in general records of persons having custody or use of the securities, deposits, or credits of a client, that relate to such custody or use, are subject at any time, or from time to time, to such reasonable periodic, special, or other examinations and other information and document requests by representatives of the commission, as the commission deems necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors   2 certain persons subject to other regulation any person that is subject to regulation and examination by a federal financial institution regulatory agency as such term is defined under section 212 c 2 of title 18, united states code may satisfy any examination request, information request, or document request described under paragraph 1 , by providing the commission with a detailed listing, in writing, of the securities, deposits, or credits of the client within the custody or use of such person       sec 929r beneficial ownership and short-swing profit reporting  a beneficial ownership reporting section 13 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78m is amended  1 in subsection d 1  a by inserting after within ten days after such acquisition the following or within such shorter time as the commission may establish by rule and   b by striking send to the issuer of the security at its principal executive office, by registered or certified mail, send to each exchange where the security is traded, and    2 in subsection d 2  a by striking in the statements to the issuer and the exchange, and and   b by striking shall be transmitted to the issuer and the exchange and    3 in subsection g 1 , by striking shall send to the issuer of the security and and   4 in subsection g 2  a by striking sent to the issuer and and   b by striking shall be transmitted to the issuer and     b short-swing profit reporting section 16 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78p a is amended  1 in paragraph 1 , by striking and, if such security is registered on a national securities exchange, also with the exchange and   2 in paragraph 2 b , by inserting after officer the following , or within such shorter time as the commission may establish by rule     sec 929s fingerprinting  section 17 f 2 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78q f 2 is amended  1 in the first sentence, by striking and registered clearing agency, and inserting registered clearing agency, registered securities information processor, national securities exchange, and national securities association and   2 in the second sentence, by striking or clearing agency, and inserting clearing agency, securities information processor, national securities exchange, or national securities association,     sec 929t equal treatment of self-regulatory organization rules  section 29 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78cc a is amended by striking an exchange required thereby and inserting a self-regulatory organization,    sec 929u deadline for completing examinations, inspections and enforcement actions  the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 4d the following new section  sec 4e deadline for completing enforcement investigations and compliance examinations and inspections  a enforcement investigations  1 in general not later than 180 days after the date on which commission staff provide a written wells notification to any person, the commission staff shall either file an action against such person or provide notice to the director of the division of enforcement of its intent to not file an action   2 exceptions for certain complex actions notwithstanding paragraph 1 , if the director of the division of enforcement of the commission or the directors designee determines that a particular enforcement investigation is sufficiently complex such that a determination regarding the filing of an action against a person cannot be completed within the deadline specified in paragraph 1 , the director of the division of enforcement of the commission or the directors designee may, after providing notice to the chairman of the commission, extend such deadline as needed for one additional 180-day period if after the additional 180-day period the director of the division of enforcement of the commission or the directors designee determines that a particular enforcement investigation is sufficiently complex such that a determination regarding the filing of an action against a person cannot be completed within the additional 180-day period, the director of the division of enforcement of the commission or the directors designee may, after providing notice to and receiving approval of the commission, extend such deadline as needed for one or more additional successive 180-day periods    b compliance examinations and inspections  1 in general not later than 180 days after the date on which commission staff completes the on-site portion of its compliance examination or inspection or receives all records requested from the entity being examined or inspected, whichever is later, commission staff shall provide the entity being examined or inspected with written notification indicating either that the examination or inspection has concluded, has concluded without findings, or that the staff requests the entity undertake corrective action   2 exception for certain complex actions notwithstanding paragraph 1 , if the head of any division or office within the commission responsible for compliance examinations and inspections or his designee determines that a particular compliance examination or inspection is sufficiently complex such that a determination regarding concluding the examination or inspection, or regarding the staff requests the entity undertake corrective action, cannot be completed within the deadline specified in paragraph 1 , the head of any division or office within the commission responsible for compliance examinations and inspections or his designee may, after providing notice to the chairman of the commission, extend such deadline as needed for one additional 180-day period        sec 929v security investor protection act amendments  a increasing the minimum assessment paid by sipc members section 4 d 1 c of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78ddd d 1 c is amended by striking $150 per annum and inserting the following 002 percent of the gross revenues from the securities business of such member of sipc   b increasing the fine for prohibited acts under sipa section 14 c of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78jjj c is amended  1 in paragraph 1 , by striking $50,000 and inserting $250,000 and   2 in paragraph 2 , by striking $50,000 and inserting $250,000    c penalty for misrepresentation of sipc membership or protection section 14 of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78jjj is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  d misrepresentation of sipc membership or protection  1 in general any person who falsely represents by any means including, without limitation, through the internet or any other medium of mass communication , with actual knowledge of the falsity of the representation and with an intent to deceive or cause injury to another, that such person, or another person, is a member of sipc or that any person or account is protected or is eligible for protection under this act or by sipc, shall be liable for any damages caused thereby and shall be fined not more than $250,000 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years   2 injunctions any court having jurisdiction of a civil action arising under this act may grant temporary injunctions and final injunctions on such terms as the court deems reasonable to prevent or restrain any violation of paragraph 1 any such injunction may be served anywhere in the united states on the person enjoined, shall be operative throughout the united states, and shall be enforceable, by proceedings in contempt or otherwise, by any united states court having jurisdiction over that person the clerk of the court granting the injunction shall, when requested by any other court in which enforcement of the injunction is sought, transmit promptly to the other court a certified copy of all papers in the case on file in such clerks office       sec 929w notice to missing security holders  section 17a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78q1 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection  g due diligence for the delivery of dividends, interest, and other valuable property rights  1 revision of rules required the commission shall revise its regulations in section 24017ad17 of title 17, code of federal regulations, as in effect on december 8, 1997, to extend the application of such section to brokers and dealers and to provide for the following  a a requirement that the paying agent provide a single written notification to each missing security holder that the missing security holder has been sent a check that has not yet been negotiated the written notification may be sent along with a check or other mailing subsequently sent to the missing security holder but must be provided no later than 7 months after the sending of the not yet negotiated check   b an exclusion for paying agents from the notification requirements when the value of the not yet negotiated check is less than $25   c a provision clarifying that the requirements described in subparagraph a shall have no effect on state escheatment laws   d for purposes of such revised regulations  i a security holder shall be considered a missing security holder if a check is sent to the security holder and the check is not negotiated before the earlier of the paying agent sending the next regularly scheduled check or the elapsing of 6 months after the sending of the not yet negotiated check and   ii the term paying agent includes any issuer, transfer agent, broker, dealer, investment adviser, indenture trustee, custodian, or any other person that accepts payments from the issuer of a security and distributes the payments to the holders of the security     2 rulemaking the commission shall adopt such rules, regulations, and orders necessary to implement this subsection no later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection in proposing such rules, the commission shall seek to minimize disruptions to current systems used by or on behalf of paying agents to process payment to account holders and avoid requiring multiple paying agents to send written notification to a missing security holder regarding the same not yet negotiated check       sec 929x short sale reforms  a short sale disclosure section 13 f of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78m f is amended by redesignating paragraphs 2 , 3 , 4 , and 5 as paragraphs 3 , 4 , 5 , and 6 , respectively, and inserting after paragraph 1 the following  2 the commission shall prescribe rules providing for the public disclosure of the name of the issuer and the title, class, cusip number, aggregate amount of the number of short sales of each security, and any additional information determined by the commission following the end of the reporting period at a minimum, such public disclosure shall occur every month     b short selling enforcement section 9 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78i is amended  1 by redesignating subsections d , e , f , g , h , and i as subsections e , f , g , h , i , and j , respectively and   2 inserting after subsection c , the following new subsection  d transactions relating to short sales of securities it shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indirectly, by the use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce, or of any facility of any national securities exchange, or for any member of a national securities exchange to effect, alone or with one or more other persons, a manipulative short sale of any security the commission shall issue such other rules as are necessary or appropriate to ensure that the appropriate enforcement options and remedies are available for violations of this subsection in the public interest or for the protection of investors      c investor notification section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o is amended  1 by redesignating subsections e , f , g , h , and i as subsections f , g , h , i , and j , respectively and   2 inserting after subsection d the following new subsection  e notices to customers regarding securities lending every registered broker or dealer shall provide notice to its customers that they may elect not to allow their fully paid securities to be used in connection with short sales if a broker or dealer uses a customers securities in connection with short sales, the broker or dealer shall provide notice to its customer that the broker or dealer may receive compensation in connection with lending the customers securities the commission, by rule, as it deems necessary or appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of investors, may prescribe the form, content, time, and manner of delivery of any notice required under this paragraph       sec 929y study on extraterritorial private rights of action  a in general the securities and exchange commission of the united states shall solicit public comment and thereafter conduct a study to determine the extent to which private rights of action under the antifraud provisions of the securities and exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u-4 should be extended to cover  1 conduct within the united states that constitutes a significant step in the furtherance of the violation, even if the securities transaction occurs outside the united states and involves only foreign investors and   2 conduct occurring outside the united states that has a foreseeable substantial effect within the united states    b contents the study shall consider and analyze, among other things  1 the scope of such a private right of action, including whether it should extend to all private actors or whether it should be more limited to extend just to institutional investors or otherwise   2 what implications such a private right of action would have on international comity   3 the economic costs and benefits of extending a private right of action for transnational securities frauds and   4 whether a narrower extraterritorial standard should be adopted    c report a report of the study shall be submitted and recommendations made to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act    sec 929z gao study on securities litigation  a study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study on the impact of authorizing a private right of action against any person who aids or abets another person in violation of the securities laws to the extent feasible, this study shall include  1 a review of the role of secondary actors in companies issuance of securities   2 the courts interpretation of the scope of liability for secondary actors under federal securities laws after january 14, 2008 and   3 the types of lawsuits decided under the private securities litigation act of 1995    b report not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit a report to congress on the findings of the study required under subsection a     subtitle c improvements to the regulation of credit rating agencies  sec 931 findings  congress finds the following  1 because of the systemic importance of credit ratings and the reliance placed on credit ratings by individual and institutional investors and financial regulators, the activities and performances of credit rating agencies, including nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, are matters of national public interest, as credit rating agencies are central to capital formation, investor confidence, and the efficient performance of the united states economy   2 credit rating agencies, including nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, play a critical gatekeeper role in the debt market that is functionally similar to that of securities analysts, who evaluate the quality of securities in the equity market, and auditors, who review the financial statements of firms such role justifies a similar level of public oversight and accountability   3 because credit rating agencies perform evaluative and analytical services on behalf of clients, much as other financial gatekeepers do, the activities of credit rating agencies are fundamentally commercial in character and should be subject to the same standards of liability and oversight as apply to auditors, securities analysts, and investment bankers   4 in certain activities, particularly in advising arrangers of structured financial products on potential ratings of such products, credit rating agencies face conflicts of interest that need to be carefully monitored and that therefore should be addressed explicitly in legislation in order to give clearer authority to the securities and exchange commission   5 in the recent financial crisis, the ratings on structured financial products have proven to be inaccurate this inaccuracy contributed significantly to the mismanagement of risks by financial institutions and investors, which in turn adversely impacted the health of the economy in the united states and around the world such inaccuracy necessitates increased accountability on the part of credit rating agencies     sec 932 enhanced regulation, accountability, and transparency of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations  a in general section 15e of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o7 is amended  1 in subsection b  a in paragraph 1 a , by striking furnished and inserting filed and by striking furnishing and inserting filing   b in paragraph 1 b , by striking furnishing and inserting filing and   c in the first sentence of paragraph 2 , by striking furnish to and inserting file with    2 in subsection c  a in paragraph 2  i in the second sentence, by inserting any other provision of this section, or after notwithstanding and   ii by inserting after the period at the end the following nothing in this paragraph may be construed to afford a defense against any action or proceeding brought by the commission to enforce the antifraud provisions of the securities laws and    b by adding at the end the following  3 internal controls over processes for determining credit ratings  a in general each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall establish, maintain, enforce, and document an effective internal control structure governing the implementation of and adherence to policies, procedures, and methodologies for determining credit ratings, taking into consideration such factors as the commission may prescribe, by rule   b attestation requirement the commission shall prescribe rules requiring each nationally recognized statistical rating organization to submit to the commission an annual internal controls report, which shall contain  i a description of the responsibility of the management of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization in establishing and maintaining an effective internal control structure under subparagraph a   ii an assessment of the effectiveness of the internal control structure of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and   iii the attestation of the chief executive officer, or equivalent individual, of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization        3 in subsection d  a by inserting after or revoke the registration of any nationally recognized statistical rating organization the following , or with respect to any person who is associated with, who is seeking to become associated with, or, at the time of the alleged misconduct, who was associated or was seeking to become associated with a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, the commission, by order, shall censure, place limitations on the activities or functions of such person, suspend for a period not exceeding 1 year, or bar such person from being associated with a nationally recognized statistical rating organization,   b by inserting bar after placing of limitations, suspension,   c in paragraph 2 , by striking furnished to and inserting filed with   d in paragraph 2 , by redesignating subparagraphs a and b as clauses i and ii , respectively, and adjusting the clause margins accordingly   e by redesignating paragraphs 1 through 5 as subparagraphs a through e , respectively, and adjusting the subparagraph margins accordingly   f in the matter preceding subparagraph a , as so redesignated, by striking the commission and inserting the following  1 in general the commission     g in subparagraph d , as so redesignated  i by striking furnish and inserting file and   ii by striking or at the end    h in subparagraph e , as so redesignated, by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon and   i by adding at the end the following  f has failed reasonably to supervise, with a view to preventing a violation of the securities laws, an individual who commits such a violation, if the individual is subject to the supervision of that person   2 suspension or revocation for particular class of securities  a in general the commission may temporarily suspend or permanently revoke the registration of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization with respect to a particular class or subclass of securities, if the commission finds, on the record after notice and opportunity for hearing, that the nationally recognized statistical rating organization does not have adequate financial and managerial resources to consistently produce credit ratings with integrity   b considerations in making any determination under subparagraph a , the commission shall consider  i whether the nationally recognized statistical rating organization has failed over a sustained period of time, as determined by the commission, to produce ratings that are accurate for that class or subclass of securities and   ii such other factors as the commission may determine        4 in subsection h , by adding at the end the following  3 separation of ratings from sales and marketing  a rules required the commission shall issue rules to prevent the sales and marketing considerations of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization from influencing the production of ratings by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   b contents of rules the rules issued under subparagraph a shall provide for  i exceptions for small nationally recognized statistical rating organizations with respect to which the commission determines that the separation of the production of ratings and sales and marketing activities is not appropriate and   ii suspension or revocation of the registration of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, if the commission finds, on the record, after notice and opportunity for a hearing, that  i the nationally recognized statistical rating organization has committed a violation of a rule issued under this subsection and   ii the violation of a rule issued under this subsection affected a rating      4 look-back requirement  a review by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall establish, maintain, and enforce policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that, in any case in which an employee of a person subject to a credit rating of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization or the issuer, underwriter, or sponsor of a security or money market instrument subject to a credit rating of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization was employed by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and participated in any capacity in determining credit ratings for the person or the securities or money market instruments during the 1-year period preceding the date an action was taken with respect to the credit rating, the nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall  i conduct a review to determine whether any conflicts of interest of the employee influenced the credit rating and   ii take action to revise the rating if appropriate, in accordance with such rules as the commission shall prescribe    b review by commission  i in general the commission shall conduct periodic reviews of the policies described in subparagraph a and the implementation of the policies at each nationally recognized statistical rating organization to ensure they are reasonably designed and implemented to most effectively eliminate conflicts of interest   ii timing of reviews the commission shall review the code of ethics and conflict of interest policy of each nationally recognized statistical rating organization  i not less frequently than annually and   ii whenever such policies are materially modified or amended      5 report to commission on certain employment transitions  a report required each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall report to the commission any case such organization knows or can reasonably be expected to know where a person associated with such organization within the previous 5 years obtains employment with any obligor, issuer, underwriter, or sponsor of a security or money market instrument for which the organization issued a credit rating during the 12-month period prior to such employment, if such employee  i was a senior officer of such organization   ii participated in any capacity in determining credit ratings for such obligor, issuer, underwriter, or sponsor or   iii supervised an employee described in clause ii    b public disclosure upon receiving such a report, the commission shall make such information publicly available      5 in subsection j  a by striking each and inserting the following  1 in general each   and   b by adding at the end the following  2 limitations  a in general except as provided in subparagraph b , an individual designated under paragraph 1 may not, while serving in the designated capacity  i perform credit ratings   ii participate in the development of ratings methodologies or models   iii perform marketing or sales functions or   iv participate in establishing compensation levels, other than for employees working for that individual    b exception the commission may exempt a small nationally recognized statistical rating organization from the limitations under this paragraph, if the commission finds that compliance with such limitations would impose an unreasonable burden on the nationally recognized statistical rating organization    3 other duties each individual designated under paragraph 1 shall establish procedures for the receipt, retention, and treatment of  a complaints regarding credit ratings, models, methodologies, and compliance with the securities laws and the policies and procedures developed under this section and   b confidential, anonymous complaints by employees or users of credit ratings    4 compensation the compensation of each compliance officer appointed under paragraph 1 shall not be linked to the financial performance of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and shall be arranged so as to ensure the independence of the officers judgment   5 annual reports required  a annual reports required each individual designated under paragraph 1 shall submit to the nationally recognized statistical rating organization an annual report on the compliance of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization with the securities laws and the policies and procedures of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization that includes  i a description of any material changes to the code of ethics and conflict of interest policies of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and   ii a certification that the report is accurate and complete    b submission of reports to the commission each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall file the reports required under subparagraph a together with the financial report that is required to be submitted to the commission under this section       6 in subsection k , by striking furnish to and inserting file with   7 in subsection l 2 a i , by striking furnished and inserting filed and   8 by striking subsection p and inserting the following  p regulation of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations  1 establishment of office of credit ratings  a office established the commission shall establish within the commission an office of credit ratings referred to in this subsection as the office to administer the rules of the commission  i with respect to the practices of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations in determining ratings, for the protection of users of credit ratings and in the public interest   ii to promote accuracy in credit ratings issued by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations and   iii to ensure that such ratings are not unduly influenced by conflicts of interest    b director of the office the head of the office shall be the director, who shall report to the chairman    2 staffing the office established under this subsection shall be staffed sufficiently to carry out fully the requirements of this section the staff shall include persons with knowledge of and expertise in corporate, municipal, and structured debt finance   3 commission examinations  a annual examinations required the office shall conduct an examination of each nationally recognized statistical rating organization at least annually   b conduct of examinations each examination under subparagraph a shall include a review of  i whether the nationally recognized statistical rating organization conducts business in accordance with the policies, procedures, and rating methodologies of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   ii the management of conflicts of interest by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   iii implementation of ethics policies by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   iv the internal supervisory controls of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   v the governance of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   vi the activities of the individual designated by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization under subsection j 1   vii the processing of complaints by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and   viii the policies of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization governing the post-employment activities of former staff of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization    c inspection reports the commission shall make available to the public, in an easily understandable format, an annual report summarizing  i the essential findings of all examinations conducted under subparagraph a , as deemed appropriate by the commission   ii the responses by the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations to any material regulatory deficiencies identified by the commission under clause i and   iii whether the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations have appropriately addressed the recommendations of the commission contained in previous reports under this subparagraph     4 rulemaking authority the commission shall  a establish, by rule, fines, and other penalties applicable to any nationally recognized statistical rating organization that violates the requirements of this section and the rules thereunder and   b issue such rules as may be necessary to carry out this section     q transparency of ratings performance  1 rulemaking required the commission shall, by rule, require that each nationally recognized statistical rating organization publicly disclose information on the initial credit ratings determined by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization for each type of obligor, security, and money market instrument, and any subsequent changes to such credit ratings, for the purpose of allowing users of credit ratings to evaluate the accuracy of ratings and compare the performance of ratings by different nationally recognized statistical rating organizations   2 content the rules of the commission under this subsection shall require, at a minimum, disclosures that  a are comparable among nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, to allow users of credit ratings to compare the performance of credit ratings across nationally recognized statistical rating organizations   b are clear and informative for investors having a wide range of sophistication who use or might use credit ratings   c include performance information over a range of years and for a variety of types of credit ratings, including for credit ratings withdrawn by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   d are published and made freely available by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization, on an easily accessible portion of its website, and in writing, when requested   e are appropriate to the business model of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization and   f each nationally recognized statistical rating organization include an attestation with any credit rating it issues affirming that no part of the rating was influenced by any other business activities, that the rating was based solely on the merits of the instruments being rated, and that such rating was an independent evaluation of the risks and merits of the instrument     r credit ratings methodologies the commission shall prescribe rules, for the protection of investors and in the public interest, with respect to the procedures and methodologies, including qualitative and quantitative data and models, used by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations that require each nationally recognized statistical rating organization  1 to ensure that credit ratings are determined using procedures and methodologies, including qualitative and quantitative data and models, that are  a approved by the board of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization, a body performing a function similar to that of a board and   b in accordance with the policies and procedures of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization for the development and modification of credit rating procedures and methodologies    2 to ensure that when material changes to credit rating procedures and methodologies including changes to qualitative and quantitative data and models are made, that  a the changes are applied consistently to all credit ratings to which the changed procedures and methodologies apply   b to the extent that changes are made to credit rating surveillance procedures and methodologies, the changes are applied to then-current credit ratings by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization within a reasonable time period determined by the commission, by rule and   c the nationally recognized statistical rating organization publicly discloses the reason for the change and    3 to notify users of credit ratings  a of the version of a procedure or methodology, including the qualitative methodology or quantitative inputs, used with respect to a particular credit rating   b when a material change is made to a procedure or methodology, including to a qualitative model or quantitative inputs   c when a significant error is identified in a procedure or methodology, including a qualitative or quantitative model, that may result in credit rating actions and   d of the likelihood of a material change described in subparagraph b resulting in a change in current credit ratings     s transparency of credit rating methodologies and information reviewed  1 form for disclosures the commission shall require, by rule, each nationally recognized statistical rating organization to prescribe a form to accompany the publication of each credit rating that discloses  a information relating to  i the assumptions underlying the credit rating procedures and methodologies   ii the data that was relied on to determine the credit rating and   iii if applicable, how the nationally recognized statistical rating organization used servicer or remittance reports, and with what frequency, to conduct surveillance of the credit rating and    b information that can be used by investors and other users of credit ratings to better understand credit ratings in each class of credit rating issued by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization    2 format the form developed under paragraph 1 shall  a be easy to use and helpful for users of credit ratings to understand the information contained in the report   b require the nationally recognized statistical rating organization to provide the content described in paragraph 3 b in a manner that is directly comparable across types of securities and   c be made readily available to users of credit ratings, in electronic or paper form, as the commission may, by rule, determine    3 content of form  a qualitative content each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall disclose on the form developed under paragraph 1  i the credit ratings produced by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization   ii the main assumptions and principles used in constructing procedures and methodologies, including qualitative methodologies and quantitative inputs and assumptions about the correlation of defaults across underlying assets used in rating structured products   iii the potential limitations of the credit ratings, and the types of risks excluded from the credit ratings that the nationally recognized statistical rating organization does not comment on, including liquidity, market, and other risks   iv information on the uncertainty of the credit rating, including  i information on the reliability, accuracy, and quality of the data relied on in determining the credit rating and   ii a statement relating to the extent to which data essential to the determination of the credit rating were reliable or limited, including  aa any limits on the scope of historical data and   bb any limits in accessibility to certain documents or other types of information that would have better informed the credit rating     v whether and to what extent third party due diligence services have been used by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization, a description of the information that such third party reviewed in conducting due diligence services, and a description of the findings or conclusions of such third party   vi a description of the data about any obligor, issuer, security, or money market instrument that were relied upon for the purpose of determining the credit rating   vii a statement containing an overall assessment of the quality of information available and considered in producing a rating for an obligor, security, or money market instrument, in relation to the quality of information available to the nationally recognized statistical rating organization in rating similar issuances   viii information relating to conflicts of interest of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization and   ix such additional information as the commission may require    b quantitative content each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall disclose on the form developed under this subsection  i an explanation or measure of the potential volatility of the credit rating, including  i any factors that might lead to a change in the credit ratings and   ii the magnitude of the change that a user can expect under different market conditions    ii information on the content of the rating, including  i the historical performance of the rating and   ii the expected probability of default and the expected loss in the event of default    iii information on the sensitivity of the rating to assumptions made by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization, including  i 5 assumptions made in the ratings process that, without accounting for any other factor, would have the greatest impact on a rating if the assumptions were proven false or inaccurate and   ii an analysis, using specific examples, of how each of the 5 assumptions identified under subclause i impacts a rating    iv such additional information as may be required by the commission     4 due diligence services for asset-backed securities  a findings the issuer or underwriter of any asset-backed security shall make publicly available the findings and conclusions of any third-party due diligence report obtained by the issuer or underwriter   b certification required in any case in which third-party due diligence services are employed by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, an issuer, or an underwriter, the person providing the due diligence services shall provide to any nationally recognized statistical rating organization that produces a rating to which such services relate, written certification, as provided in subparagraph c   c format and content the commission shall establish the appropriate format and content for the written certifications required under subparagraph b , to ensure that providers of due diligence services have conducted a thorough review of data, documentation, and other relevant information necessary for a nationally recognized statistical rating organization to provide an accurate rating   d disclosure of certification the commission shall adopt rules requiring a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, at the time at which the nationally recognized statistical rating organization produces a rating, to disclose the certification described in subparagraph b to the public in a manner that allows the public to determine the adequacy and level of due diligence services provided by a third party     t corporate governance, organization, and management of conflicts of interest  1 board of directors each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall have a board of directors   2 independent directors  a in general at least of the board of directors, but not fewer than 2 of the members thereof, shall be independent of the nationally recognized statistical rating agency a portion of the independent directors shall include users of ratings from a nationally recognized statistical rating organization   b independence determination in order to be considered independent for purposes of this subsection, a member of the board of directors of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization  i may not, other than in his or her capacity as a member of the board of directors or any committee thereof  i accept any consulting, advisory, or other compensatory fee from the nationally recognized statistical rating organization or   ii be a person associated with the nationally recognized statistical rating organization or with any affiliated company thereof and    ii shall be disqualified from any deliberation involving a specific rating in which the independent board member has a financial interest in the outcome of the rating    c compensation and term the compensation of the independent members of the board of directors of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall not be linked to the business performance of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization, and shall be arranged so as to ensure the independence of their judgment the term of office of the independent directors shall be for a pre-agreed fixed period, not to exceed 5 years, and shall not be renewable    3 duties of board of directors in addition to the overall responsibilities of the board of directors, the board shall oversee  a the establishment, maintenance, and enforcement of policies and procedures for determining credit ratings   b the establishment, maintenance, and enforcement of policies and procedures to address, manage, and disclose any conflicts of interest   c the effectiveness of the internal control system with respect to policies and procedures for determining credit ratings and   d the compensation and promotion policies and practices of the nationally recognized statistical rating organization    4 treatment of nrsro subsidiaries if a nationally recognized statistical rating organization is a subsidiary of a parent entity, the board of the directors of the parent entity may satisfy the requirements of this subsection by assigning to a committee of such board of directors the duties under paragraph 3 , if  a at least of the members of the committee including the chairperson of the committee are independent, as defined in this section and   b at least 1 member of the committee is a user of ratings from a nationally recognized statistical rating organization    5 exception authority if the commission finds that compliance with the provisions of this subsection present an unreasonable burden on a small nationally recognized statistical rating organization, the commission may permit the nationally recognized statistical rating organization to delegate such responsibilities to a committee that includes at least one individual who is a user of ratings of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization       b conforming amendment section 3 a 62 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a 62 is amended by striking subparagraph a and redesignating subparagraphs b and c as subparagraphs a and b , respectively    sec 933 state of mind in private actions  a accountability section 15e m of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o7 m is amended to read as follows  m accountability  1 in general the enforcement and penalty provisions of this title shall apply to statements made by a credit rating agency in the same manner and to the same extent as such provisions apply to statements made by a registered public accounting firm or a securities analyst under the securities laws, and such statements shall not be deemed forward-looking statements for the purposes of section 21e   2 rulemaking the commission shall issue such rules as may be necessary to carry out this subsection      b state of mind section 21d b 2 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78u4 b 2 is amended  1 by striking in any and inserting the following  a in general except as provided in subparagraph b , in any   and   2 by adding at the end the following  b exception in the case of an action for money damages brought against a credit rating agency or a controlling person under this title, it shall be sufficient, for purposes of pleading any required state of mind in relation to such action, that the complaint state with particularity facts giving rise to a strong inference that the credit rating agency knowingly or recklessly failed  i to conduct a reasonable investigation of the rated security with respect to the factual elements relied upon by its own methodology for evaluating credit risk or   ii to obtain reasonable verification of such factual elements which verification may be based on a sampling technique that does not amount to an audit from other sources that the credit rating agency considered to be competent and that were independent of the issuer and underwriter        sec 934 referring tips to law enforcement or regulatory authorities  section 15e of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o7 , as amended by this subtitle, is amended by adding at the end the following  u duty to report tips alleging material violations of law  1 duty to report each nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall refer to the appropriate law enforcement or regulatory authorities any information that the nationally recognized statistical rating organization receives from a third party and finds credible that alleges that an issuer of securities rated by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization has committed or is committing a material violation of law that has not been adjudicated by a federal or state court   2 rule of construction nothing in paragraph 1 may be construed to require a nationally recognized statistical rating organization to verify the accuracy of the information described in paragraph 1       sec 935 consideration of information from sources other than the issuer in rating decisions  section 15e of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o7 , as amended by this subtitle, is amended by adding at the end the following  v information from sources other than the issuer in producing a credit rating, a nationally recognized statistical rating organization shall consider information about an issuer that the nationally recognized statistical rating organization has, or receives from a source other than the issuer or underwriter, that the nationally recognized statistical rating organization finds credible and potentially significant to a rating decision      sec 936 qualification standards for credit rating analysts  not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall issue rules that are reasonably designed to ensure that any person employed by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization to perform credit ratings  1 meets standards of training, experience, and competence necessary to produce accurate ratings for the categories of issuers whose securities the person rates and   2 is tested for knowledge of the credit rating process     sec 937 timing of regulations  unless otherwise specifically provided in this subtitle, the commission shall issue final regulations, as required by this subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act    sec 938 universal ratings symbols  a rulemaking the commission shall require, by rule, each nationally recognized statistical rating organization to establish, maintain, and enforce written policies and procedures that  1 assess the probability that an issuer of a security or money market instrument will default, fail to make timely payments, or otherwise not make payments to investors in accordance with the terms of the security or money market instrument   2 clearly define and disclose the meaning of any symbol used by the nationally recognized statistical rating organization to denote a credit rating and   3 apply any symbol described in paragraph 2 in a manner that is consistent for all types of securities and money market instruments for which the symbol is used    b rule of construction nothing in this section shall prohibit a nationally recognized statistical rating organization from using distinct sets of symbols to denote credit ratings for different types of securities or money market instruments    sec 939 removal of statutory references to credit ratings  a federal deposit insurance act the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 1811 et seq is amended  1 in section 7 b 1 e i , by striking credit rating entities, and other private economic and insert private economic, credit,   2 in section 28 d  a in the subsection heading, by striking not of investment grade   b in paragraph 1 , by striking not of investment grade and inserting that does not meet standards of credit-worthiness as established by the corporation   c in paragraph 2 , by striking not of investment grade   d by striking paragraph 3   e by redesignating paragraph 4 as paragraph 3 and   f in paragraph 3 , as so redesignated  i by striking subparagraph a   ii by redesignating subparagraphs b and c as subparagraphs a and b , respectively and   iii in subparagraph b , as so redesignated, by striking not of investment grade and inserting that does not meet standards of credit-worthiness as established by the corporation and     3 in section 28 e  a in the subsection heading, by striking not of investment grade   b in paragraph 1 , by striking not of investment grade and inserting that does not meet standards of credit-worthiness as established by the corporation and   c in paragraphs 2 and 3 , by striking not of investment grade each place that it appears and inserting that does not meet standards of credit-worthiness established by the corporation     b federal housing enterprises financial safety and soundness act of 1992 section 1319 of the federal housing enterprises financial safety and soundness act of 1992 12 usc 4519 is amended by striking that is a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, as such term is defined in section 3 a of the securities exchange act of 1934,   c investment company act of 1940 section 6 a 5 a iv i investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a6 a 5 a iv i is amended by striking is rated investment grade by not less than 1 nationally recognized statistical rating organization and inserting meets such standards of credit-worthiness as the commission shall adopt   d revised statutes section 5136a of title lxii of the revised statutes of the united states 12 usc 24a is amended  1 in subsection a 2 e , by striking any applicable rating and inserting standards of credit-worthiness established by the comptroller of the currency   2 in the heading for subsection a 3 by striking rating or comparable requirement and inserting requirement   3 subsection a 3 , by amending subparagraph a to read as follows  a in general a national bank meets the requirements of this paragraph if the bank is one of the 100 largest insured banks and has not fewer than 1 issue of outstanding debt that meets standards of credit-worthiness or other criteria as the secretary of the treasury and the board of governors of the federal reserve system may jointly establish     4 in the heading for subsection f , by striking maintain public rating or and inserting meet standards of credit-worthiness and   5 in subsection f 1 , by striking any applicable rating and inserting standards of credit-worthiness established by the comptroller of the currency    e securities exchange act of 1934 section 3 a securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a 3 a is amended  1 in paragraph 41 , by striking is rated in one of the two highest rating categories by at least one nationally recognized statistical rating organization and inserting meets standards of credit-worthiness as established by the commission and   2 in paragraph 53 a , by striking is rated in 1 of the 4 highest rating categories by at least 1 nationally recognized statistical rating organization and inserting meets standards of credit-worthiness as established by the commission    f world bank discussions section 3 a 6 of the amendment in the nature of a substitute to the text of hr 4645, as ordered reported from the committee on banking, finance and urban affairs on september 22, 1988, as enacted into law by section 555 of public law 100461, 22 usc 286hh a 6 , is amended by striking credit rating and inserting credit-worthiness   g effective date the amendments made by this section shall take effect 2 years after the date of enactment of this act   h study and report  1 in general commission shall undertake a study on the feasability and desirability of  a standardizing credit ratings terminology, so that all credit rating agencies issue credit ratings using identical terms   b standardizing the market stress conditions under which ratings are evaluated   c requiring a quantitative correspondence between credit ratings and a range of default probabilities and loss expectations under standardized conditions of economic stress and   d standardizing credit rating terminology across asset classes, so that named ratings correspond to a standard range of default probabilities and expected losses independent of asset class and issuing entity    2 report not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall submit to congress a report containing the findings of the study under paragraph 1 and the recommendations, if any, of the commission with respect to the study     sec 939a review of reliance on ratings  a agency review not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this subtitle, each federal agency shall, to the extent applicable, review  1 any regulation issued by such agency that requires the use of an assessment of the credit-worthiness of a security or money market instrument and   2 any references to or requirements in such regulations regarding credit ratings    b modifications required each such agency shall modify any such regulations identified by the review conducted under subsection a to remove any reference to or requirement of reliance on credit ratings and to substitute in such regulations such standard of credit-worthiness as each respective agency shall determine as appropriate for such regulations in making such determination, such agencies shall seek to establish, to the extent feasible, uniform standards of credit-worthiness for use by each such agency, taking into account the entities regulated by each such agency and the purposes for which such entities would rely on such standards of credit-worthiness   c report upon conclusion of the review required under subsection a , each federal agency shall transmit a report to congress containing a description of any modification of any regulation such agency made pursuant to subsection b    sec 939b elimination of exemption from fair disclosure rule  not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this subtitle, the securities exchange commission shall revise regulation fd 17 cfr 243100 to remove from such regulation the exemption for entities whose primary business is the issuance of credit ratings 17 cfr 243100 b 2 iii    sec 939c securities and exchange commission study on strengthening credit rating agency independence  a study the commission shall conduct a study of  1 the independence of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations and   2 how the independence of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations affects the ratings issued by the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations    b subjects for evaluation in conducting the study under subsection a , the commission shall evaluate  1 the management of conflicts of interest raised by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization providing other services, including risk management advisory services, ancillary assistance, or consulting services   2 the potential impact of rules prohibiting a nationally recognized statistical rating organization that provides a rating to an issuer from providing other services to the issuer and   3 any other issue relating to nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, as the chairman of the commission determines is appropriate    c report not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this act, the chairman of the commission shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the results of the study conducted under subsection a , including recommendations, if any, for improving the integrity of ratings issued by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations    sec 939d government accountability office study on alternative business models  a study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study on alternative means for compensating nationally recognized statistical rating organizations in order to create incentives for nationally recognized statistical rating organizations to provide more accurate credit ratings, including any statutory changes that would be required to facilitate the use of an alternative means of compensation   b report not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the results of the study conducted under subsection a , including recommendations, if any, for providing incentives to credit rating agencies to improve the credit rating process    sec 939e government accountability office study on the creation of an independent professional analyst organization  a study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study on the feasibility and merits of creating an independent professional organization for rating analysts employed by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations that would be responsible for  1 establishing independent standards for governing the profession of rating analysts   2 establishing a code of ethical conduct and   3 overseeing the profession of rating analysts    b report not later than 1 year after the date of publication of the rules issued by the commission pursuant to section 936, the comptroller general shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the results of the study conducted under subsection a    sec 939f study and rulemaking on assigned credit ratings  a definition in this section, the term structured finance product means an asset-backed security, as defined in section 3 a 77 of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by section 941, and any structured product based on an asset-backed security, as determined by the commission, by rule   b study the commission shall carry out a study of  1 the credit rating process for structured finance products and the conflicts of interest associated with the issuer-pay and the subscriber-pay models   2 the feasibility of establishing a system in which a public or private utility or a self-regulatory organization assigns nationally recognized statistical rating organizations to determine the credit ratings of structured finance products, including  a an assessment of potential mechanisms for determining fees for the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations   b appropriate methods for paying fees to the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations   c the extent to which the creation of such a system would be viewed as the creation of moral hazard by the federal government and   d any constitutional or other issues concerning the establishment of such a system    3 the range of metrics that could be used to determine the accuracy of credit ratings and   4 alternative means for compensating nationally recognized statistical rating organizations that would create incentives for accurate credit ratings    c report and recommendation not later than 24 months after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report that contains  1 the findings of the study required under subsection b and   2 any recommendations for regulatory or statutory changes that the commission determines should be made to implement the findings of the study required under subsection b    d rulemaking  1 rulemaking after submission of the report under subsection c , the commission shall, by rule, as the commission determines is necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors, establish a system for the assignment of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations to determine the initial credit ratings of structured finance products, in a manner that prevents the issuer, sponsor, or underwriter of the structured finance product from selecting the nationally recognized statistical rating organization that will determine the initial credit ratings and monitor such credit ratings in issuing any rule under this paragraph, the commission shall give thorough consideration to the provisions of section 15e w of the securities exchange act of 1934, as that provision would have been added by section 939d of hr 4173 111th congress , as passed by the senate on may 20, 2010, and shall implement the system described in such section 939d unless the commission determines that an alternative system would better serve the public interest and the protection of investors   2 rule of construction nothing in this subsection may be construed to limit or suspend any other rulemaking authority of the commission     sec 939g effect of rule 436 g  rule 436 g , promulgated by the securities and exchange commission under the securities act of 1933, shall have no force or effect    sec 939h sense of congress  it is the sense of congress that the securities and exchange commission should exercise the rulemaking authority of the commission under section 15e h 2 b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o7 h 2 b to prevent improper conflicts of interest arising from employees of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations providing services to issuers of securities that are unrelated to the issuance of credit ratings, including consulting, advisory, and other services     subtitle d improvements to the asset-backed securitization process  sec 941 regulation of credit risk retention  a definition of asset-backed security section 3 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a is amended by adding at the end the following  77 asset-backed security the term asset-backed security  a means a fixed-income or other security collateralized by any type of self-liquidating financial asset including a loan, a lease, a mortgage, or a secured or unsecured receivable that allows the holder of the security to receive payments that depend primarily on cash flow from the asset, including  i a collateralized mortgage obligation   ii a collateralized debt obligation   iii a collateralized bond obligation   iv a collateralized debt obligation of asset-backed securities   v a collateralized debt obligation of collateralized debt obligations and   vi a security that the commission, by rule, determines to be an asset-backed security for purposes of this section and    b does not include a security issued by a finance subsidiary held by the parent company or a company controlled by the parent company, if none of the securities issued by the finance subsidiary are held by an entity that is not controlled by the parent company      b credit risk retention the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 15f, as added by this act, the following  sec 15g credit risk retention  a definitions in this section  1 the term federal banking agencies means the office of the comptroller of the currency, the board of governors of the federal reserve system, and the federal deposit insurance corporation   2 the term insured depository institution has the same meaning as in section 3 c of the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 1813 c   3 the term securitizer means  a an issuer of an asset-backed security or   b a person who organizes and initiates an asset-backed securities transaction by selling or transferring assets, either directly or indirectly, including through an affiliate, to the issuer and    4 the term originator means a person who  a through the extension of credit or otherwise, creates a financial asset that collateralizes an asset-backed security and   b sells an asset directly or indirectly to a securitizer     b regulations required  1 in general not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this section, the federal banking agencies and the commission shall jointly prescribe regulations to require any securitizer to retain an economic interest in a portion of the credit risk for any asset that the securitizer, through the issuance of an asset-backed security, transfers, sells, or conveys to a third party   2 residential mortgages not later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the federal banking agencies, the commission, the secretary of housing and urban development, and the federal housing finance agency, shall jointly prescribe regulations to require any securitizer to retain an economic interest in a portion of the credit risk for any residential mortgage asset that the securitizer, through the issuance of an asset-backed security, transfers, sells, or conveys to a third party    c standards for regulations  1 standards the regulations prescribed under subsection b shall  a prohibit a securitizer from directly or indirectly hedging or otherwise transferring the credit risk that the securitizer is required to retain with respect to an asset   b require a securitizer to retain  i not less than 5 percent of the credit risk for any asset  i that is not a qualified residential mortgage that is transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of an asset-backed security by the securitizer or   ii that is a qualified residential mortgage that is transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of an asset-backed security by the securitizer, if 1 or more of the assets that collateralize the asset-backed security are not qualified residential mortgages or    ii less than 5 percent of the credit risk for an asset that is not a qualified residential mortgage that is transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of an asset-backed security by the securitizer, if the originator of the asset meets the underwriting standards prescribed under paragraph 2 b    c specify  i the permissible forms of risk retention for purposes of this section   ii the minimum duration of the risk retention required under this section and   iii that a securitizer is not required to retain any part of the credit risk for an asset that is transferred, sold or conveyed through the issuance of an asset-backed security by the securitizer, if all of the assets that collateralize the asset-backed security are qualified residential mortgages    d apply, regardless of whether the securitizer is an insured depository institution   e with respect to a commercial mortgage, specify the permissible types, forms, and amounts of risk retention that would meet the requirements of subparagraph b , which in the determination of the federal banking agencies and the commission may include  i retention of a specified amount or percentage of the total credit risk of the asset   ii retention of the first-loss position by a third-party purchaser that specifically negotiates for the purchase of such first loss position, holds adequate financial resources to back losses, provides due diligence on all individual assets in the pool before the issuance of the asset-backed securities, and meets the same standards for risk retention as the federal banking agencies and the commission require of the securitizer   iii a determination by the federal banking agencies and the commission that the underwriting standards and controls for the asset are adequate and   iv provision of adequate representations and warranties and related enforcement mechanisms and    f establish appropriate standards for retention of an economic interest with respect to collateralized debt obligations, securities collateralized by collateralized debt obligations, and similar instruments collateralized by other asset-backed securities and   g provide for  i a total or partial exemption of any securitization, as may be appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of investors   ii a total or partial exemption for the securitization of an asset issued or guaranteed by the united states, or an agency of the united states, as the federal banking agencies and the commission jointly determine appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of investors, except that, for purposes of this clause, the federal national mortgage association and the federal home loan mortgage corporation are not agencies of the united states   iii a total or partial exemption for any asset-backed security that is a security issued or guaranteed by any state of the united states, or by any political subdivision of a state or territory, or by any public instrumentality of a state or territory that is exempt from the registration requirements of the securities act of 1933 by reason of section 3 a 2 of that act 15 usc 77c a 2 , or a security defined as a qualified scholarship funding bond in section 150 d 2 of the internal revenue code of 1986, as may be appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of investors and   iv the allocation of risk retention obligations between a securitizer and an originator in the case of a securitizer that purchases assets from an originator, as the federal banking agencies and the commission jointly determine appropriate     2 asset classes  a asset classes the regulations prescribed under subsection b shall establish asset classes with separate rules for securitizers of different classes of assets, including residential mortgages, commercial mortgages, commercial loans, auto loans, and any other class of assets that the federal banking agencies and the commission deem appropriate   b contents for each asset class established under subparagraph a , the regulations prescribed under subsection b shall include underwriting standards established by the federal banking agencies that specify the terms, conditions, and characteristics of a loan within the asset class that indicate a low credit risk with respect to the loan     d originators in determining how to allocate risk retention obligations between a securitizer and an originator under subsection c 1 e iv , the federal banking agencies and the commission shall  1 reduce the percentage of risk retention obligations required of the securitizer by the percentage of risk retention obligations required of the originator and   2 consider  a whether the assets sold to the securitizer have terms, conditions, and characteristics that reflect low credit risk   b whether the form or volume of transactions in securitization markets creates incentives for imprudent origination of the type of loan or asset to be sold to the securitizer and   c the potential impact of the risk retention obligations on the access of consumers and businesses to credit on reasonable terms, which may not include the transfer of credit risk to a third party     e exemptions, exceptions, and adjustments  1 in general the federal banking agencies and the commission may jointly adopt or issue exemptions, exceptions, or adjustments to the rules issued under this section, including exemptions, exceptions, or adjustments for classes of institutions or assets relating to the risk retention requirement and the prohibition on hedging under subsection c 1   2 applicable standards any exemption, exception, or adjustment adopted or issued by the federal banking agencies and the commission under this paragraph shall  a help ensure high quality underwriting standards for the securitizers and originators of assets that are securitized or available for securitization and   b encourage appropriate risk management practices by the securitizers and originators of assets, improve the access of consumers and businesses to credit on reasonable terms, or otherwise be in the public interest and for the protection of investors    3 certain institutions and programs exempt  a farm credit system institutions notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the requirements of this section shall not apply to any loan or other financial asset made, insured, guaranteed, or purchased by any institution that is subject to the supervision of the farm credit administration, including the federal agricultural mortgage corporation   b other federal programs this section shall not apply to any residential, multifamily, or health care facility mortgage loan asset, or securitization based directly or indirectly on such an asset, which is insured or guaranteed by the united states or an agency of the united states for purposes of this subsection, the federal national mortgage association, the federal home loan mortgage corporation, and the federal home loan banks shall not be considered an agency of the united states    4 exemption for qualified residential mortgages  a in general the federal banking agencies, the commission, the secretary of housing and urban development, and the director of the federal housing finance agency shall jointly issue regulations to exempt qualified residential mortgages from the risk retention requirements of this subsection   b qualified residential mortgage the federal banking agencies, the commission, the secretary of housing and urban development, and the director of the federal housing finance agency shall jointly define the term qualified residential mortgage for purposes of this subsection, taking into consideration underwriting and product features that historical loan performance data indicate result in a lower risk of default, such as  i documentation and verification of the financial resources relied upon to qualify the mortgagor   ii standards with respect to  i the residual income of the mortgagor after all monthly obligations   ii the ratio of the housing payments of the mortgagor to the monthly income of the mortgagor   iii the ratio of total monthly installment payments of the mortgagor to the income of the mortgagor    iii mitigating the potential for payment shock on adjustable rate mortgages through product features and underwriting standards   iv mortgage guarantee insurance or other types of insurance or credit enhancement obtained at the time of origination, to the extent such insurance or credit enhancement reduces the risk of default and   v prohibiting or restricting the use of balloon payments, negative amortization, prepayment penalties, interest-only payments, and other features that have been demonstrated to exhibit a higher risk of borrower default    c limitation on definition the federal banking agencies, the commission, the secretary of housing and urban development, and the director of the federal housing finance agency in defining the term qualified residential mortgage , as required by subparagraph b , shall define that term to be no broader than the definition qualified mortgage as the term is defined under section 129c c 2 of the truth in lending act, as amended by the consumer financial protection act of 2010, and regulations adopted thereunder    5 condition for qualified residential mortgage exemption the regulations issued under paragraph 4 shall provide that an asset-backed security that is collateralized by tranches of other asset-backed securities shall not be exempt from the risk retention requirements of this subsection   6 certification the commission shall require an issuer to certify, for each issuance of an asset-backed security collateralized exclusively by qualified residential mortgages, that the issuer has evaluated the effectiveness of the internal supervisory controls of the issuer with respect to the process for ensuring that all assets that collateralize the asset-backed security are qualified residential mortgages    f enforcement the regulations issued under this section shall be enforced by  1 the appropriate federal banking agency, with respect to any securitizer that is an insured depository institution and   2 the commission, with respect to any securitizer that is not an insured depository institution    g authority of commission the authority of the commission under this section shall be in addition to the authority of the commission to otherwise enforce the securities laws   h authority to coordinate on rulemaking the chairperson of the financial stability oversight council shall coordinate all joint rulemaking required under this section   i effective date of regulations the regulations issued under this section shall become effective  1 with respect to securitizers and originators of asset-backed securities backed by residential mortgages, 1 year after the date on which final rules under this section are published in the federal register and   2 with respect to securitizers and originators of all other classes of asset-backed securities, 2 years after the date on which final rules under this section are published in the federal register       c study on risk retention  1 study the board of governors of the federal reserve system, in coordination and consultation with the comptroller of the currency, the director of the office of thrift supervision, the chairperson of the federal deposit insurance corporation, and the securities and exchange commission shall conduct a study of the combined impact on each individual class of asset-backed security established under section 15g c 2 of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by subsection b , of  a the new credit risk retention requirements contained in the amendment made by subsection b , including the effect credit risk retention requirements have on increasing the market for federally subsidized loans and   b the financial accounting statements 166 and 167 issued by the financial accounting standards board    2 report not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this act, the board of governors of the federal reserve system shall submit to congress a report on the study conducted under paragraph 1 such report shall include statutory and regulatory recommendations for eliminating any negative impacts on the continued viability of the asset-backed securitization markets and on the availability of credit for new lending identified by the study conducted under paragraph 1     sec 942 disclosures and reporting for asset-backed securities  a securities exchange act of 1934 section 15 d of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o d is amended  1 by striking d each and inserting the following  d supplementary and periodic information  1 in general each      2 in the third sentence, by inserting after securities of each class the following , other than any class of asset-backed securities, and   3 by adding at the end the following  2 asset-backed securities  a suspension of duty to file the commission may, by rule or regulation, provide for the suspension or termination of the duty to file under this subsection for any class of asset-backed security, on such terms and conditions and for such period or periods as the commission deems necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors   b classification of issuers the commission may, for purposes of this subsection, classify issuers and prescribe requirements appropriate for each class of issuers of asset-backed securities       b securities act of 1933 section 7 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77g is amended by adding at the end the following  c disclosure requirements  1 in general the commission shall adopt regulations under this subsection requiring each issuer of an asset-backed security to disclose, for each tranche or class of security, information regarding the assets backing that security   2 content of regulations in adopting regulations under this subsection, the commission shall  a set standards for the format of the data provided by issuers of an asset-backed security, which shall, to the extent feasible, facilitate comparison of such data across securities in similar types of asset classes and   b require issuers of asset-backed securities, at a minimum, to disclose asset-level or loan-level data, if such data are necessary for investors to independently perform due diligence, including  i data having unique identifiers relating to loan brokers or originators   ii the nature and extent of the compensation of the broker or originator of the assets backing the security and   iii the amount of risk retention by the originator and the securitizer of such assets         sec 943 representations and warranties in asset-backed offerings  not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this act, the securities and exchange commission shall prescribe regulations on the use of representations and warranties in the market for asset-backed securities as that term is defined in section 3 a 77 of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this subtitle that  1 require each national recognized statistical rating organization to include in any report accompanying a credit rating a description of  a the representations, warranties, and enforcement mechanisms available to investors and   b how they differ from the representations, warranties, and enforcement mechanisms in issuances of similar securities and    2 require any securitizer as that term is defined in section 15g a of the securities exchange act of 1934, as added by this subtitle to disclose fulfilled and unfulfilled repurchase requests across all trusts aggregated by the securitizer, so that investors may identify asset originators with clear underwriting deficiencies     sec 944 exempted transactions under the securities act of 1933  a exemption eliminated section 4 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77d is amended  1 by striking paragraph 5 and   2 by striking 6 transactions and inserting the following  5 transactions      b conforming amendment section 3 a 4 b vii i of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a 4 b vii i is amended by striking 4 6 and inserting 4 5    sec 945 due diligence analysis and disclosure in asset-backed securities issues  section 7 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77g , as amended by this subtitle, is amended by adding at the end the following  d registration statement for asset-backed securities not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the commission shall issue rules relating to the registration statement required to be filed by any issuer of an asset-backed security as that term is defined in section 3 a 77 of the securities exchange act of 1934 that require any issuer of an asset-backed security  1 to perform a review of the assets underlying the asset-backed security and   2 to disclose the nature of the review under paragraph 1       sec 946 study on the macroeconomic effects of risk retention requirements  a study required the chairman of the financial services oversight council shall carry out a study on the macroeconomic effects of the risk retention requirements under this subtitle, and the amendments made by this subtitle, with emphasis placed on potential beneficial effects with respect to stabilizing the real estate market such study shall include  1 an analysis of the effects of risk retention on real estate asset price bubbles, including a retrospective estimate of what fraction of real estate losses may have been averted had such requirements been in force in recent years   2 an analysis of the feasibility of minimizing real estate price bubbles by proactively adjusting the percentage of risk retention that must be borne by creditors and securitizers of real estate debt, as a function of regional or national market conditions   3 a comparable analysis for proactively adjusting mortgage origination requirements   4 an assessment of whether such proactive adjustments should be made by an independent regulator, or in a formulaic and transparent manner   5 an assessment of whether such adjustments should take place independently or in concert with monetary policy and   6 recommendations for implementation and enabling legislation    b report not later than the end of the 180-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this title, the chairman of the financial services oversight council shall issue a report to the congress containing any findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection a     subtitle e accountability and executive compensation  sec 951 shareholder vote on executive compensation disclosures  the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 14 15 usc 78n the following  sec 14a shareholder approval of executive compensation  a separate resolution required  1 in general not less frequently than once every 3 years, a proxy or consent or authorization for an annual or other meeting of the shareholders for which the proxy solicitation rules of the commission require compensation disclosure shall include a separate resolution subject to shareholder vote to approve the compensation of executives, as disclosed pursuant to section 229402 of title 17, code of federal regulations, or any successor thereto   2 frequency of vote not less frequently than once every 6 years, a proxy or consent or authorization for an annual or other meeting of the shareholders for which the proxy solicitation rules of the commission require compensation disclosure shall include a separate resolution subject to shareholder vote to determine whether votes on the resolutions required under paragraph 1 will occur every 1, 2, or 3 years   3 effective date the proxy or consent or authorization for the first annual or other meeting of the shareholders occurring after the end of the 6-month period beginning on the date of enactment of this section shall include  a the resolution described in paragraph 1 and   b a separate resolution subject to shareholder vote to determine whether votes on the resolutions required under paragraph 1 will occur every 1, 2, or 3 years     b shareholder approval of golden parachute compensation  1 disclosure in any proxy or consent solicitation material the solicitation of which is subject to the rules of the commission pursuant to subsection a for a meeting of the shareholders occurring after the end of the 6-month period beginning on the date of enactment of this section, at which shareholders are asked to approve an acquisition, merger, consolidation, or proposed sale or other disposition of all or substantially all the assets of an issuer, the person making such solicitation shall disclose in the proxy or consent solicitation material, in a clear and simple form in accordance with regulations to be promulgated by the commission, any agreements or understandings that such person has with any named executive officers of such issuer or of the acquiring issuer, if such issuer is not the acquiring issuer concerning any type of compensation whether present, deferred, or contingent that is based on or otherwise relates to the acquisition, merger, consolidation, sale, or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the issuer and the aggregate total of all such compensation that may and the conditions upon which it may be paid or become payable to or on behalf of such executive officer   2 shareholder approval any proxy or consent or authorization relating to the proxy or consent solicitation material containing the disclosure required by paragraph 1 shall include a separate resolution subject to shareholder vote to approve such agreements or understandings and compensation as disclosed, unless such agreements or understandings have been subject to a shareholder vote under subsection a    c rule of construction the shareholder vote referred to in subsections a and b shall not be binding on the issuer or the board of directors of an issuer, and may not be construed  1 as overruling a decision by such issuer or board of directors   2 to create or imply any change to the fiduciary duties of such issuer or board of directors   3 to create or imply any additional fiduciary duties for such issuer or board of directors or   4 to restrict or limit the ability of shareholders to make proposals for inclusion in proxy materials related to executive compensation    d disclosure of votes every institutional investment manager subject to section 13 f shall report at least annually how it voted on any shareholder vote pursuant to subsections a and b , unless such vote is otherwise required to be reported publicly by rule or regulation of the commission   e exemption the commission may, by rule or order, exempt an issuer or class of issuers from the requirement under subsection a or b in determining whether to make an exemption under this subsection, the commission shall take into account, among other considerations, whether the requirements under subsections a and b disproportionately burdens small issuers       sec 952 compensation committee independence  a in general the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78 et seq is amended by inserting after section 10b, as added by section 753, the following  sec 10c compensation committees  a independence of compensation committees  1 listing standards the commission shall, by rule, direct the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of any equity security of an issuer, other than an issuer that is a controlled company, limited partnership, company in bankruptcy proceedings, open-ended management investment company that is registered under the investment company act of 1940, or a foreign private issuer that provides annual disclosures to shareholders of the reasons that the foreign private issuer does not have an independent compensation committee, that does not comply with the requirements of this subsection   2 independence of compensation committees the rules of the commission under paragraph 1 shall require that each member of the compensation committee of the board of directors of an issuer be  a a member of the board of directors of the issuer and   b independent    3 independence the rules of the commission under paragraph 1 shall require that, in determining the definition of the term independence for purposes of paragraph 2 , the national securities exchanges and the national securities associations shall consider relevant factors, including  a the source of compensation of a member of the board of directors of an issuer, including any consulting, advisory, or other compensatory fee paid by the issuer to such member of the board of directors and   b whether a member of the board of directors of an issuer is affiliated with the issuer, a subsidiary of the issuer, or an affiliate of a subsidiary of the issuer    4 exemption authority the rules of the commission under paragraph 1 shall permit a national securities exchange or a national securities association to exempt a particular relationship from the requirements of paragraph 2 , with respect to the members of a compensation committee, as the national securities exchange or national securities association determines is appropriate, taking into consideration the size of an issuer and any other relevant factors    b independence of compensation consultants and other compensation committee advisers  1 in general the compensation committee of an issuer may only select a compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser to the compensation committee after taking into consideration the factors identified by the commission under paragraph 2   2 rules the commission shall identify factors that affect the independence of a compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser to a compensation committee of an issuer such factors shall be competitively neutral among categories of consultants, legal counsel, or other advisers and preserve the ability of compensation committees to retain the services of members of any such category, and shall include  a the provision of other services to the issuer by the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser   b the amount of fees received from the issuer by the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser, as a percentage of the total revenue of the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser   c the policies and procedures of the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser that are designed to prevent conflicts of interest   d any business or personal relationship of the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser with a member of the compensation committee and   e any stock of the issuer owned by the compensation consultant, legal counsel, or other adviser     c compensation committee authority relating to compensation consultants  1 authority to retain compensation consultant  a in general the compensation committee of an issuer, in its capacity as a committee of the board of directors, may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant   b direct responsibility of compensation committee the compensation committee of an issuer shall be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation, and oversight of the work of a compensation consultant   c rule of construction this paragraph may not be construed  i to require the compensation committee to implement or act consistently with the advice or recommendations of the compensation consultant or   ii to affect the ability or obligation of a compensation committee to exercise its own judgment in fulfillment of the duties of the compensation committee     2 disclosure in any proxy or consent solicitation material for an annual meeting of the shareholders or a special meeting in lieu of the annual meeting occurring on or after the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, each issuer shall disclose in the proxy or consent material, in accordance with regulations of the commission, whether  a the compensation committee of the issuer retained or obtained the advice of a compensation consultant and   b the work of the compensation consultant has raised any conflict of interest and, if so, the nature of the conflict and how the conflict is being addressed     d authority to engage independent legal counsel and other advisers  1 in general the compensation committee of an issuer, in its capacity as a committee of the board of directors, may, in its sole discretion, retain and obtain the advice of independent legal counsel and other advisers   2 direct responsibility of compensation committee the compensation committee of an issuer shall be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation, and oversight of the work of independent legal counsel and other advisers   3 rule of construction this subsection may not be construed  a to require a compensation committee to implement or act consistently with the advice or recommendations of independent legal counsel or other advisers under this subsection or   b to affect the ability or obligation of a compensation committee to exercise its own judgment in fulfillment of the duties of the compensation committee     e compensation of compensation consultants, independent legal counsel, and other advisers each issuer shall provide for appropriate funding, as determined by the compensation committee in its capacity as a committee of the board of directors, for payment of reasonable compensation  1 to a compensation consultant and   2 to independent legal counsel or any other adviser to the compensation committee    f commission rules  1 in general not later than 360 days after the date of enactment of this section, the commission shall, by rule, direct the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of any security of an issuer that is not in compliance with the requirements of this section   2 opportunity to cure defects the rules of the commission under paragraph 1 shall provide for appropriate procedures for an issuer to have a reasonable opportunity to cure any defects that would be the basis for the prohibition under paragraph 1 , before the imposition of such prohibition   3 exemption authority  a in general the rules of the commission under paragraph 1 shall permit a national securities exchange or a national securities association to exempt a category of issuers from the requirements under this section, as the national securities exchange or the national securities association determines is appropriate   b considerations in determining appropriate exemptions under subparagraph a , the national securities exchange or the national securities association shall take into account the potential impact of the requirements of this section on smaller reporting issuers     g controlled company exemption  1 in general this section shall not apply to any controlled company   2 definition for purposes of this section, the term controlled company means an issuer  a that is listed on a national securities exchange or by a national securities association and   b that holds an election for the board of directors of the issuer in which more than 50 percent of the voting power is held by an individual, a group, or another issuer        b study and report  1 study the securities and exchange commission shall conduct a study and review of the use of compensation consultants and the effects of such use   2 report not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this act, the commission shall submit a report to congress on the results of the study and review required by this subsection     sec 953 executive compensation disclosures  a disclosure of pay versus performance section 14 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78n , as amended by this title, is amended by adding at the end the following  i disclosure of pay versus performance the commission shall, by rule, require each issuer to disclose in any proxy or consent solicitation material for an annual meeting of the shareholders of the issuer a clear description of any compensation required to be disclosed by the issuer under section 229402 of title 17, code of federal regulations or any successor thereto , including information that shows the relationship between executive compensation actually paid and the financial performance of the issuer, taking into account any change in the value of the shares of stock and dividends of the issuer and any distributions the disclosure under this subsection may include a graphic representation of the information required to be disclosed     b additional disclosure requirements  1 in general the commission shall amend section 229402 of title 17, code of federal regulations, to require each issuer to disclose in any filing of the issuer described in section 22910 a of title 17, code of federal regulations or any successor thereto  a the median of the annual total compensation of all employees of the issuer, except the chief executive officer or any equivalent position of the issuer   b the annual total compensation of the chief executive officer or any equivalent position of the issuer and   c the ratio of the amount described in subparagraph a to the amount described in subparagraph b    2 total compensation for purposes of this subsection, the total compensation of an employee of an issuer shall be determined in accordance with section 229402 c 2 x of title 17, code of federal regulations, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this act     sec 954 recovery of erroneously awarded compensation  the securities exchange act of 1934 is amended by inserting after section 10c, as added by section 952, the following  sec 10d recovery of erroneously awarded compensation policy  a listing standards the commission shall, by rule, direct the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of any security of an issuer that does not comply with the requirements of this section   b recovery of funds the rules of the commission under subsection a shall require each issuer to develop and implement a policy providing  1 for disclosure of the policy of the issuer on incentive-based compensation that is based on financial information required to be reported under the securities laws and   2 that, in the event that the issuer is required to prepare an accounting restatement due to the material noncompliance of the issuer with any financial reporting requirement under the securities laws, the issuer will recover from any current or former executive officer of the issuer who received incentive-based compensation including stock options awarded as compensation during the 3-year period preceding the date on which the issuer is required to prepare an accounting restatement, based on the erroneous data, in excess of what would have been paid to the executive officer under the accounting restatement        sec 955 disclosure regarding employee and director hedging  section 14 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78n , as amended by this title, is amended by adding at the end the following  j disclosure of hedging by employees and directors the commission shall, by rule, require each issuer to disclose in any proxy or consent solicitation material for an annual meeting of the shareholders of the issuer whether any employee or member of the board of directors of the issuer, or any designee of such employee or member, is permitted to purchase financial instruments including prepaid variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars, and exchange funds that are designed to hedge or offset any decrease in the market value of equity securities  1 granted to the employee or member of the board of directors by the issuer as part of the compensation of the employee or member of the board of directors or   2 held, directly or indirectly, by the employee or member of the board of directors       sec 956 enhanced compensation structure reporting  a enhanced disclosure and reporting of compensation arrangements  1 in general not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this title, the appropriate federal regulators jointly shall prescribe regulations or guidelines to require each covered financial institution to disclose to the appropriate federal regulator the structures of all incentive-based compensation arrangements offered by such covered financial institutions sufficient to determine whether the compensation structure  a provides an executive officer, employee, director, or principal shareholder of the covered financial institution with excessive compensation, fees, or benefits or   b could lead to material financial loss to the covered financial institution    2 rules of construction nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring the reporting of the actual compensation of particular individuals nothing in this section shall be construed to require a covered financial institution that does not have an incentive-based payment arrangement to make the disclosures required under this subsection    b prohibition on certain compensation arrangements not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this title, the appropriate federal regulators shall jointly prescribe regulations or guidelines that prohibit any types of incentive-based payment arrangement, or any feature of any such arrangement, that the regulators determine encourages inappropriate risks by covered financial institutions  1 by providing an executive officer, employee, director, or principal shareholder of the covered financial institution with excessive compensation, fees, or benefits or   2 that could lead to material financial loss to the covered financial institution    c standards the appropriate federal regulators shall  1 ensure that any standards for compensation established under subsections a or b are comparable to the standards established under section of the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 2 1831p1 for insured depository institutions and   2 in establishing such standards under such subsections, take into consideration the compensation standards described in section 39 c of the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 1831p 9 1 c    d enforcement the provisions of this section and the regulations issued under this section shall be enforced under section 505 of the gramm-leach-bliley act and, for purposes of such section, a violation of this section or such regulations shall be treated as a violation of subtitle a of title v of such act   e definitions as used in this section  1 the term appropriate federal regulator means the board of governors of the federal reserve system, the office of the comptroller of the currency, the board of directors of the federal deposit insurance corporation, the director of the office of thrift supervision, the national credit union administration board, the securities and exchange commission, the federal housing finance agency and   2 the term covered financial institution means  a a depository institution or depository institution holding company, as such terms are defined in section 3 of the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 1813   b a broker-dealer registered under section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o   c a credit union, as described in section 19 b 1 a iv of the federal reserve act   d an investment advisor, as such term is defined in section 202 a 11 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b-2 a 11   e the federal national mortgage association   f the federal home loan mortgage corporation and   g any other financial institution that the appropriate federal regulators, jointly, by rule, determine should be treated as a covered financial institution for purposes of this section     f exemption for certain financial institutions the requirements of this section shall not apply to covered financial institutions with assets of less than $1,000,000,000    sec 957 voting by brokers  section 6 b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78f b is amended  1 in paragraph 9  a in subparagraph a , by redesignating clauses i through v as subclauses i through v , respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly   b by redesignating subparagraphs a through d as clauses i through iv , respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly   c by inserting a after 9 and   d in the matter immediately following clause iv , as so redesignated, by striking as used and inserting the following  b as used      2 by adding at the end the following  10  a the rules of the exchange prohibit any member that is not the beneficial owner of a security registered under section 12 from granting a proxy to vote the security in connection with a shareholder vote described in subparagraph b , unless the beneficial owner of the security has instructed the member to vote the proxy in accordance with the voting instructions of the beneficial owner   b a shareholder vote described in this subparagraph is a shareholder vote with respect to the election of a member of the board of directors of an issuer, executive compensation, or any other significant matter, as determined by the commission, by rule, and does not include a vote with respect to the uncontested election of a member of the board of directors of any investment company registered under the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq   c nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to prohibit a national securities exchange from prohibiting a member that is not the beneficial owner of a security registered under section 12 from granting a proxy to vote the security in connection with a shareholder vote not described in subparagraph a         subtitle f improvements to the management of the securities and exchange commission  sec 961 report and certification of internal supervisory controls  a annual reports and certification not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal year, the commission shall submit a report to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives on the conduct by the commission of examinations of registered entities, enforcement investigations, and review of corporate financial securities filings   b contents of reports each report under subsection a shall contain  1 an assessment, as of the end of the most recent fiscal year, of the effectiveness of  a the internal supervisory controls of the commission and   b the procedures of the commission applicable to the staff of the commission who perform examinations of registered entities, enforcement investigations, and reviews of corporate financial securities filings    2 a certification that the commission has adequate internal supervisory controls to carry out the duties of the commission described in paragraph 1 b and   3 a summary by the comptroller general of the united states of the review carried out under subsection d    c certification  1 signature the certification under subsection b 2 shall be signed by the director of the division of enforcement, the director of the division of corporation finance, and the director of the office of compliance inspections and examinations or the head of any successor division or office   2 content of certification each individual described in paragraph 1 shall certify that the individual  a is directly responsible for establishing and maintaining the internal supervisory controls of the division or office of which the individual is the head   b is knowledgeable about the internal supervisory controls of the division or office of which the individual is the head   c has evaluated the effectiveness of the internal supervisory controls during the 90-day period ending on the final day of the fiscal year to which the report relates and   d has disclosed to the commission any significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal supervisory controls that could adversely affect the ability of the division or office to consistently conduct inspections, or investigations, or reviews of filings with professional competence and integrity     d new director or acting director notwithstanding subsection a , if the director of the division of enforcement, the director of the division of corporate finance, or the director of the office of compliance inspections and examinations has served as director of the division or office for less than 90 days on the date on which a report is required to be submitted under subsection a , the commission may submit the report on the date on which the director has served as director for 90 days if there is no director of the division of enforcement, the division of corporate finance, or the office of compliance inspections and examinations, on the date on which a report is required to be submitted under subsection a , the acting director of the division or office may make the certification required under subsection c   e review by the comptroller general  1 report the comptroller general of the united states shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report that contains a review of the adequacy and effectiveness of the internal supervisory control structure and procedures described in subsection b 1 , not less frequently than once every 3 years, at a time to coincide with the publication of the reports of the commission under this section   2 authority to hire experts the comptroller general of the united states may hire independent consultants with specialized expertise in any area relevant to the duties of the comptroller general described in this section, in order to assist the comptroller general in carrying out such duties     sec 962 triennial report on personnel management  a triennial report required once every 3 years, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit a report to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives on the quality of personnel management by the commission   b contents of report each report under subsection a shall include  1 an evaluation of  a the effectiveness of supervisors in using the skills, talents, and motivation of the employees of the commission to achieve the goals of the commission   b the criteria for promoting employees of the commission to supervisory positions   c the fairness of the application of the promotion criteria to the decisions of the commission   d the competence of the professional staff of the commission   e the efficiency of communication between the units of the commission regarding the work of the commission including communication between divisions and between subunits of a division and the efforts by the commission to promote such communication   f the turnover within subunits of the commission, including the consideration of supervisors whose subordinates have an unusually high rate of turnover   g whether there are excessive numbers of low-level, mid-level, or senior-level managers   h any initiatives of the commission that increase the competence of the staff of the commission   i the actions taken by the commission regarding employees of the commission who have failed to perform their duties and circumstances under which the commission has issued to employees a notice of termination and   j such other factors relating to the management of the commission as the comptroller general determines are appropriate    2 an evaluation of any improvements made with respect to the areas described in paragraph 1 since the date of submission of the previous report and   3 recommendations for how the commission can use the human resources of the commission more effectively and efficiently to carry out the mission of the commission    c consultation in preparing the report under subsection a , the comptroller general shall consult with current employees of the commission, retired employees and other former employees of the commission, the inspector general of the commission, persons that have business before the commission, any union representing the employees of the commission, private management consultants, academics, and any other source that the comptroller general deems appropriate   d report by commission not later than 90 days after the date on which the comptroller general submits each report under subsection a , the commission shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report describing the actions taken by the commission in response to the recommendations contained in the report under subsection a   e reimbursements for cost of reports  1 reimbursements required the commission shall reimburse the government accountability office for the full cost of making the reports under this section, as billed therefor by the comptroller general   2 crediting and use of reimbursements such reimbursements shall  a be credited to the appropriation account salaries and expenses, government accountability office current when the payment is received and   b remain available until expended     f authority to hire experts the comptroller general of the united states may hire independent consultants with specialized expertise in any area relevant to the duties of the comptroller general described in this section, in order to assist the comptroller general in carrying out such duties    sec 963 annual financial controls audit  a reports of commission  1 annual reports required not later than 6 months after the end of each fiscal year, the commission shall publish and submit to congress a report that  a describes the responsibility of the management of the commission for establishing and maintaining an adequate internal control structure and procedures for financial reporting and   b contains an assessment of the effectiveness of the internal control structure and procedures for financial reporting of the commission during that fiscal year    2 attestation the reports required under paragraph 1 shall be attested to by the chairman and chief financial officer of the commission    b report by comptroller general  1 report required not later than 6 months after the end of the first fiscal year after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit a report to congress that assesses  a the effectiveness of the internal control structure and procedures of the commission for financial reporting and   b the assessment of the commission under subsection a 1 b    2 attestation the comptroller general shall attest to, and report on, the assessment made by the commission under subsection a    c reimbursements for cost of reports  1 reimbursements required the commission shall reimburse the government accountability office for the full cost of making the reports under subsection b , as billed therefor by the comptroller general   2 crediting and use of reimbursements such reimbursements shall  a be credited to the appropriation account salaries and expenses, government accountability office current when the payment is received and   b remain available until expended      sec 964 report on oversight of national securities associations  a report required not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this act, and every 3 years thereafter, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report that includes an evaluation of the oversight by the commission of national securities associations registered under section 15a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o3 with respect to  1 the governance of such national securities associations, including the identification and management of conflicts of interest by such national securities associations, together with an analysis of the impact of any conflicts of interest on the regulatory enforcement or rulemaking by such national securities associations   2 the examinations carried out by the national securities associations, including the expertise of the examiners   3 the executive compensation practices of such national securities associations   4 the arbitration services provided by the national securities associations   5 the review performed by national securities associations of advertising by the members of the national securities associations   6 the cooperation with and assistance to state securities administrators by the national securities associations to promote investor protection   7 how the funding of national securities associations is used to support the mission of the national securities associations, including  a the methods of funding   b the sufficiency of funds   c how funds are invested by the national securities association pending use and   d the impact of the methods, sufficiency, and investment of funds on regulatory enforcement by the national securities associations    8 the policies regarding the employment of former employees of national securities associations by regulated entities   9 the ongoing effectiveness of the rules of the national securities associations in achieving the goals of the rules   10 the transparency of governance and activities of the national securities associations and   11 any other issue that has an impact, as determined by the comptroller general, on the effectiveness of such national securities associations in performing their mission and in dealing fairly with investors and members    b reimbursements for cost of reports  1 reimbursements required the commission shall reimburse the government accountability office for the full cost of making the reports under subsection a , as billed therefor by the comptroller general   2 crediting and use of reimbursements such reimbursements shall  a be credited to the appropriation account salaries and expenses, government accountability office current when the payment is received and   b remain available until expended      sec 965 compliance examiners  section 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78d is amended by adding at the end the following  h examiners  1 division of trading and markets the division of trading and markets of the commission, or any successor organizational unit, shall have a staff of examiners who shall  a perform compliance inspections and examinations of entities under the jurisdiction of that division and   b report to the director of that division    2 division of investment management the division of investment management of the commission, or any successor organizational unit, shall have a staff of examiners who shall  a perform compliance inspections and examinations of entities under the jurisdiction of that division and   b report to the director of that division        sec 966 suggestion program for employees of the commission  the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 4c 15 usc 78d3 the following  sec 4d additional duties of inspector general  a suggestion submissions by commission employees  1 hotline established the inspector general of the commission shall establish and maintain a telephone hotline or other electronic means for the receipt of  a suggestions by employees of the commission for improvements in the work efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity, and the use of the resources, of the commission and   b allegations by employees of the commission of waste, abuse, misconduct, or mismanagement within the commission    2 confidentiality the inspector general shall maintain as confidential  a the identity of any individual who provides information by the means established under paragraph 1 , unless the individual requests otherwise, in writing and   b at the request of any such individual, any specific information provided by the individual     b consideration of reports the inspector general shall consider any suggestions or allegations received by the means established under subsection a 1 , and shall recommend appropriate action in relation to such suggestions or allegations   c recognition the inspector general may recognize any employee who makes a suggestion under subsection a 1 or by other means that would or does  1 increase the work efficiency, effectiveness, or productivity of the commission or   2 reduce waste, abuse, misconduct, or mismanagement within the commission    d report the inspector general of the commission shall submit to congress an annual report containing a description of  1 the nature, number, and potential benefits of any suggestions received under subsection a   2 the nature, number, and seriousness of any allegations received under subsection a   3 any recommendations made or actions taken by the inspector general in response to substantiated allegations received under subsection a and   4 any action the commission has taken in response to suggestions or allegations received under subsection a    e funding the activities of the inspector general under this subsection shall be funded by the securities and exchange commission investor protection fund established under section 21f       sec 967 commission organizational study and reform  a study required  1 in general not later than the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this subtitle, the securities and exchange commission hereinafter in this section referred to as the sec shall hire an independent consultant of high caliber and with expertise in organizational restructuring and the operations of capital markets to examine the internal operations, structure, funding, and the need for comprehensive reform of the sec, as well as the secs relationship with and the reliance on self-regulatory organizations and other entities relevant to the regulation of securities and the protection of securities investors that are under the secs oversight   2 specific areas for study the study required under paragraph 1 shall, at a minimum, include the study of  a the possible elimination of unnecessary or redundant units at the sec   b improving communications between sec offices and divisions   c the need to put in place a clear chain-of-command structure, particularly for enforcement examinations and compliance inspections   d the effect of high-frequency trading and other technological advances on the market and what the sec requires to monitor the effect of such trading and advances on the market   e the secs hiring authorities, workplace policies, and personal practices, including  i whether there is a need to further streamline hiring authorities for those who are not lawyers, accountants, compliance examiners, or economists   ii whether there is a need for further pay reforms   iii the diversity of skill sets of sec employees and whether the present skill set diversity efficiently and effectively fosters the secs mission of investor protection and   iv the application of civil service laws by the sec    f whether the secs oversight and reliance on self-regulatory organizations promotes efficient and effective governance for the securities markets and   g whether adjusting the secs reliance on self-regulatory organizations is necessary to promote more efficient and effective governance for the securities markets     b consultant report not later than the end of the 150-day period after being retained, the independent consultant hired pursuant to subsection a 1 shall issue a report to the sec and the congress containing  1 a detailed description of any findings and conclusions made while carrying out the study required under subsection a 1 and   2 recommendations for legislative, regulatory, or administrative action that the consultant determines appropriate to enable the sec and other entities on which the consultant reports to perform their statutorily or otherwise mandated missions    c sec report not later than the end of the 6-month period beginning on the date the consultant issues the report under subsection b , and every 6-months thereafter during the 2-year period following the date on which the consultant issues such report, the sec shall issue a report to the committee on financial services of the house of representatives and the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate describing the secs implementation of the regulatory and administrative recommendations contained in the consultants report    sec 968 study on sec revolving door  a government accountability office study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study that will  1 review the number of employees who leave the securities and exchange commission to work for financial institutions regulated by such commission   2 determine how many employees who leave the securities and exchange commission worked on cases that involved financial institutions regulated by such commission   3 review the length of time employees work for the securities and exchange commission before leaving to be employed by financial institutions regulated by such commission   4 review existing internal controls and make recommendations on strengthening such controls to ensure that employees of the securities and exchange commission who are later employed by financial institutions did not assist such institutions in violating any rules or regulations of the commission during the course of their employment with such commission   5 determine if greater post-employment restrictions are necessary to prevent employees of the securities and exchange commission from being employed by financial institutions after employment with such commission   6 determine if the volume of employees of the securities and exchange commission who are later employed by financial institutions has led to inefficiencies in enforcement   7 determine if employees of the securities and exchange commission who are later employed by financial institutions assisted such institutions in circumventing federal rules and regulations while employed by such commission   8 review any information that may address the volume of employees of the securities and exchange commission who are later employed by financial institutions, and make recommendations to congress and   9 review other additional issues as may be raised during the course of the study conducted under this subsection    b report not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this subtitle, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit to the committee on financial services of the house of representatives and the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate a report on the results of the study required by subsection a     subtitle g strengthening corporate governance  sec 971 proxy access  a proxy access section 14 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78n a is amended  1 by inserting 1 after a and   2 by adding at the end the following  2 the rules and regulations prescribed by the commission under paragraph 1 may include  a a requirement that a solicitation of proxy, consent, or authorization by or on behalf of an issuer include a nominee submitted by a shareholder to serve on the board of directors of the issuer and   b a requirement that an issuer follow a certain procedure in relation to a solicitation described in subparagraph a       b regulations the commission may issue rules permitting the use by a shareholder of proxy solicitation materials supplied by an issuer of securities for the purpose of nominating individuals to membership on the board of directors of the issuer, under such terms and conditions as the commission determines are in the interests of shareholders and for the protection of investors   c exemptions the commission may, by rule or order, exempt an issuer or class of issuers from the requirement made by this section or an amendment made by this section in determining whether to make an exemption under this subsection, the commission shall take into account, among other considerations, whether the requirement in the amendment made by subsection a disproportionately burdens small issuers    sec 972 disclosures regarding chairman and ceo structures  the securities exchange act of 1934 15 us c 78a et seq is amended by inserting after section 14a, as added by this title, the following  sec 14b corporate governance  not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the commission shall issue rules that require an issuer to disclose in the annual proxy sent to investors the reasons why the issuer has chosen    2 different individuals to serve as chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer or in equivalent positions of the issuer        subtitle h municipal securities  sec 975 regulation of municipal securities and changes to the board of the msrb  a registration of municipal securities dealers and municipal advisors section 15b a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 a is amended  1 in paragraph 1  a by inserting a after 1 and   b by adding at the end the following  b it shall be unlawful for a municipal advisor to provide advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products or the issuance of municipal securities, or to undertake a solicitation of a municipal entity or obligated person, unless the municipal advisor is registered in accordance with this subsection      2 in paragraph 2 , by inserting or municipal advisor after municipal securities dealer each place that term appears   3 in paragraph 3 , by inserting or municipal advisor after municipal securities dealer each place that term appears   4 in paragraph 4 , by striking dealer, or municipal securities dealer or class of brokers, dealers, or municipal securities dealers and inserting dealer, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor, or class of brokers, dealers, municipal securities dealers, or municipal advisors and   5 by adding at the end the following  5 no municipal advisor shall make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce to provide advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products, the issuance of municipal securities, or to undertake a solicitation of a municipal entity or obligated person, in connection with which such municipal advisor engages in any fraudulent, deceptive, or manipulative act or practice      b municipal securities rulemaking board section 15b b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 b is amended  1 in paragraph 1  a in the first sentence, by striking not later than and all that follows through appointed by the commission and inserting the municipal securities rulemaking board shall be composed of 15 members, or such other number of members as specified by rules of the board pursuant to paragraph 2 b ,   b by striking the second sentence and inserting the following the members of the board shall serve as members for a term of 3 years or for such other terms as specified by rules of the board pursuant to paragraph 2 b , and shall consist of a 8 individuals who are independent of any municipal securities broker, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor, at least 1 of whom shall be representative of institutional or retail investors in municipal securities, at least 1 of whom shall be representative of municipal entities, and at least 1 of whom shall be a member of the public with knowledge of or experience in the municipal industry which members are hereinafter referred to as and public representatives and b 7 individuals who are associated with a broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor, including at least 1 individual who is associated with and representative of brokers, dealers, or municipal securities dealers that are not banks or subsidiaries or departments or divisions of banks which members are hereinafter referred to as broker-dealer representatives , at least 1 individual who is associated with and representative of municipal securities dealers which are banks or subsidiaries or departments or divisions of banks which members are hereinafter referred to as bank representatives , and at least 1 individual who is associated with a municipal advisor which members are hereinafter referred to as advisor representatives and, together with the broker-dealer representatives and the bank representatives, are referred to as regulated representatives each member of the board shall be knowledgeable of matters related to the municipal securities markets   c in the third sentence, by striking initial    2 in paragraph 2  a in the matter preceding subparagraph a  i by inserting before the period at the end of the first sentence the following and advice provided to or on behalf of municipal entities or obligated persons by brokers, dealers, municipal securities dealers, and municipal advisors with respect to municipal financial products, the issuance of municipal securities, and solicitations of municipal entities or obligated persons undertaken by brokers, dealers, municipal securities dealers, and municipal advisors and   ii by striking the second sentence    b in subparagraph a  i in the matter preceding clause i  i by inserting , and no broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor shall provide advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products or the issuance of municipal securities, after sale of, any municipal security and   ii by inserting and municipal entities or obligated persons after protection of investors    ii in clause i , by striking municipal securities brokers and municipal securities dealers each place that term appears and inserting municipal securities brokers, municipal securities dealers, and municipal advisors   iii in clause ii , by adding and at the end   iv in clause iii , by striking and and inserting a period and   v by striking clause iv    c by amending subparagraph b to read as follows  b establish fair procedures for the nomination and election of members of the board and assure fair representation in such nominations and elections of public representatives, broker dealer representatives, bank representatives, and advisor representatives such rules  i shall provide that the number of public representatives of the board shall at all times exceed the total number of regulated representatives and that the membership shall at all times be as evenly divided in number as possible between public representatives and regulated representatives   ii shall specify the length or lengths of terms members shall serve   iii may increase the number of members which shall constitute the whole board, provided that such number is an odd number and   iv shall establish requirements regarding the independence of public representatives      d in subparagraph c  i by inserting and municipal financial products after municipal securities the first two times that term appears   ii by inserting , municipal entities, obligated persons, before and the public interest   iii by striking between and inserting among   iv by striking issuers, municipal securities brokers, or municipal securities dealers, to fix and inserting municipal entities, obligated persons, municipal securities brokers, municipal securities dealers, or municipal advisors, to fix and   v by striking brokers or municipal securities dealers, to regulate and inserting brokers, municipal securities dealers, or municipal advisors, to regulate    e in subparagraph d  i by inserting and advice concerning municipal financial products after transactions in municipal securities   ii by striking that no and inserting that no   iii by inserting municipal advisor, before or person associated and   iv by striking a municipal securities broker or municipal securities dealer may be compelled and inserting a municipal securities broker, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor may be compelled    f in subparagraph e  i by striking municipal securities brokers and municipal securities dealers and inserting municipal securities brokers, municipal securities dealers, and municipal advisors and   ii by striking municipal securities broker or municipal securities dealer and inserting municipal securities broker, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor    g in subparagraph g , by striking municipal securities brokers and municipal securities dealers and inserting municipal securities brokers, municipal securities dealers, and municipal advisors   h in subparagraph j  i by striking municipal securities broker and each municipal securities dealer and inserting municipal securities broker, municipal securities dealer, and municipal advisor and   ii by striking the period at the end of the second sentence and inserting , which may include charges for failure to submit to the board, or to any information system operated by the board, within the prescribed timeframes, any items of information or documents required to be submitted under any rule issued by the board    i in subparagraph k  i by inserting broker, dealer, or before municipal securities dealer each place that term appears and   ii by striking municipal securities investment portfolio and inserting related account of a broker, dealer, or municipal securities dealer and    j by adding at the end the following  l with respect to municipal advisors  i prescribe means reasonably designed to prevent acts, practices, and courses of business as are not consistent with a municipal advisors fiduciary duty to its clients   ii provide continuing education requirements for municipal advisors   iii provide professional standards and   iv not impose a regulatory burden on small municipal advisors that is not necessary or appropriate in the public interest and for the protection of investors, municipal entities, and obligated persons, provided that there is robust protection of investors against fraud       3 by redesignating paragraph 3 as paragraph 7 and   4 by inserting after paragraph 2 the following  3 the board, in conjunction with or on behalf of any federal financial regulator or self-regulatory organization, may  a establish information systems and   b assess such reasonable fees and charges for the submission of information to, or the receipt of information from, such systems from any persons which systems may be developed for the purposes of serving as a repository of information from municipal market participants or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the board, a federal financial regulator, or a self-regulatory organization, except that the board  i may not charge a fee to municipal entities or obligated persons to submit documents or other information to the board or charge a fee to any person to obtain, directly from the internet site of the board, documents or information submitted by municipal entities, obligated persons, brokers, dealers, municipal securities dealers, or municipal advisors, including documents submitted under the rules of the board or the commission and   ii shall not be prohibited from charging commercially reasonable fees for automated subscription-based feeds or similar services, or for charging for other data or document-based services customized upon request of any person, made available to commercial enterprises, municipal securities market professionals, or the general public, whether delivered through the internet or any other means, that contain all or part of the documents or information, subject to approval of the fees by the commission under section 19 b     4 the board may provide guidance and assistance in the enforcement of, and examination for, compliance with the rules of the board to the commission, a registered securities association under section 15a, or any other appropriate regulatory agency, as applicable   5 the board, the commission, and a registered securities association under section 15a, or the designees of the board, the commission, or such association, shall meet not less frequently than 2 times a year  a to describe the work of the board, the commission, and the registered securities association involving the regulation of municipal securities and   b to share information about  i the interpretation of the board, the commission, and the registered securities association of board rules and   ii examination and enforcement of compliance with board rules        c discipline of brokers, dealers, municipal securities dealers and municipal advisors fiduciary duty of municipal advisors section 15b c of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 c is amended  1 in paragraph 1 , by inserting , and no broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor shall make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce to provide advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products, the issuance of municipal securities, or to undertake a solicitation of a municipal entity or obligated person, after any municipal security   2 by adding at the end of paragraph 1 the following a municipal advisor and any person associated with such municipal advisor shall be deemed to have a fiduciary duty to any municipal entity for whom such municipal advisor acts as a municipal advisor, and no municipal advisor may engage in any act, practice, or course of business which is not consistent with a municipal advisors fiduciary duty or that is in contravention of any rule of the board   3 in paragraph 2 , by inserting or municipal advisor after municipal securities dealer each place that term appears   4 in paragraph 3  a by inserting or municipal entities or obligated person after protection of investors each place that term appears and   b by inserting or municipal advisor after municipal securities dealer each place that term appears    5 in paragraph 4 , by inserting or municipal advisor after municipal securities dealer or obligated person each place that term appears   6 in paragraph 6 b , by inserting or municipal entities or obligated person after protection of investors   7 in paragraph 7  a in subparagraph a  i in clause i , by striking and and inserting a semicolon   ii in clause ii , by striking the period and inserting and and   iii by adding at the end the following  iii the commission, or its designee, in the case of municipal advisors      b in subparagraph b , by inserting or municipal entities or obligated person after protection of investors and    8 by adding at the end the following  9  a fines collected by the commission for violations of the rules of the board shall be equally divided between the commission and the board   b fines collected by a registered securities association under section 15a 7 with respect to violations of the rules of the board shall be accounted for by such registered securities association separately from other fines collected under section 15a 7 and shall be allocated between such registered securities association and the board, and such allocation shall require the registered securities association to pay to the board 1/3 of all fines collected by the registered securities association reasonably allocable to violations of the rules of the board, or such other portion of such fines as may be directed by the commission upon agreement between the registered securities association and the board       d issuance of municipal securities section 15b d 2 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 d is amended  1 by striking through a municipal securities broker or municipal securities dealer or otherwise and inserting through a municipal securities broker, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, or otherwise and   2 by inserting or municipal advisors before to furnish    e definitions section 15b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 is amended by adding at the end the following  e definitions for purposes of this section  1 the term board means the municipal securities rulemaking board established under subsection b 1   2 the term guaranteed investment contract includes any investment that has specified withdrawal or reinvestment provisions and a specifically negotiated or bid interest rate, and also includes any agreement to supply investments on 2 or more future dates, such as a forward supply contract   3 the term investment strategies includes plans or programs for the investment of the proceeds of municipal securities that are not municipal derivatives, guaranteed investment contracts, and the recommendation of and brokerage of municipal escrow investments   4 the term municipal advisor  a means a person who is not a municipal entity or an employee of a municipal entity that  i provides advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products or the issuance of municipal securities, including advice with respect to the structure, timing, terms, and other similar matters concerning such financial products or issues or   ii undertakes a solicitation of a municipal entity    b includes financial advisors, guaranteed investment contract brokers, third-party marketers, placement agents, solicitors, finders, and swap advisors, if such persons are described in any of clauses i through iii of subparagraph a and   c does not include a broker, dealer, or municipal securities dealer serving as an underwriter as defined in section 2 a 11 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77b a 11 , any investment adviser registered under the investment advisers act of 1940, or persons associated with such investment advisers who are providing investment advice, any commodity trading advisor registered under the commodity exchange act or persons associated with a commodity trading advisor who are providing advice related to swaps, attorneys offering legal advice or providing services that are of a traditional legal nature, or engineers providing engineering advice    5 the term municipal financial product means municipal derivatives, guaranteed investment contracts, and investment strategies   6 the term rules of the board means the rules proposed and adopted by the board under subsection b 2   7 the term person associated with a municipal advisor or associated person of an advisor means  a any partner, officer, director, or branch manager of such municipal advisor or any person occupying a similar status or performing similar functions   b any other employee of such municipal advisor who is engaged in the management, direction, supervision, or performance of any activities relating to the provision of advice to or on behalf of a municipal entity or obligated person with respect to municipal financial products or the issuance of municipal securities and   c any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with such municipal advisor    8 the term municipal entity means any state, political subdivision of a state, or municipal corporate instrumentality of a state, including  a any agency, authority, or instrumentality of the state, political subdivision, or municipal corporate instrumentality   b any plan, program, or pool of assets sponsored or established by the state, political subdivision, or municipal corporate instrumentality or any agency, authority, or instrumentality thereof and   c any other issuer of municipal securities    9 the term solicitation of a municipal entity or obligated person means a direct or indirect communication with a municipal entity or obligated person made by a person, for direct or indirect compensation, on behalf of a broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, or investment adviser as defined in section 202 of the investment advisers act of 1940 that does not control, is not controlled by, or is not under common control with the person undertaking such solicitation for the purpose of obtaining or retaining an engagement by a municipal entity or obligated person of a broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, or municipal advisor for or in connection with municipal financial products, the issuance of municipal securities, or of an investment adviser to provide investment advisory services to or on behalf of a municipal entity and   10 the term obligated person means any person, including an issuer of municipal securities, who is either generally or through an enterprise, fund, or account of such person, committed by contract or other arrangement to support the payment of all or part of the obligations on the municipal securities to be sold in an offering of municipal securities      f registered securities association section 15a b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o3 b is amended by adding at the end the following  15 the rules of the association provide that the association shall  a request guidance from the municipal securities rulemaking board in interpretation of the rules of the municipal securities rulemaking board and   b provide information to the municipal securities rulemaking board about the enforcement actions and examinations of the association under section 15b b 2 e , so that the municipal securities rulemaking board may  i assist in such enforcement actions and examinations and   ii evaluate the ongoing effectiveness of the rules of the board       g registration and regulation of brokers and dealers section 15 of the securities exchange act of 1934 is amended  1 in subsection b 4 , by inserting municipal advisor, after municipal securities dealer each place that term appears and   2 in subsection c , by inserting broker, dealer, or before municipal securities dealer each place that term appears    h accounts and records, reports, examinations of exchanges, members, and others section 17 a 1 of the securities exchange act of 1934 is amended by inserting municipal advisor, after municipal securities dealer   i effective date this section, and the amendments made by this section, shall take effect on october 1, 2010    sec 976 government accountability office study of increased disclosure to investors  a study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study and review of the disclosure required to be made by issuers of municipal securities   b subjects for evaluation in conducting the study under subsection a , the comptroller general of the united states shall  1 broadly describe  a the size of the municipal securities markets and the issuers and investors and   b the disclosures provided by issuers to investors    2 compare the amount, frequency, and quality of disclosures that issuers of municipal securities are required by law to provide for the benefit of municipal securities holders, including the amount of and frequency of disclosures actually provided by issuers of municipal securities, with the amount of and frequency of disclosures that issuers of corporate securities provide for the benefit of corporate securities holders, taking into account the differences between issuers of municipal securities and issuers of corporate securities   3 evaluate the costs and benefits to various types of issuers of municipal securities of requiring issuers of municipal bonds to provide additional financial disclosures for the benefit of investors   4 evaluate the potential benefit to investors from additional financial disclosures by issuers of municipal bonds and   5 make recommendations relating to disclosure requirements for municipal issuers, including the advisability of the repeal or retention of section 15b d of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 d commonly known as the tower amendment    c report not later than 24 months after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit a report to congress on the results of the study conducted under subsection a , including recommendations for how to improve disclosure by issuers of municipal securities    sec 977 government accountability office study on the municipal securities markets  a study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study of the municipal securities markets   b report not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general of the united states shall submit a report to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate, and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives, with copies to the special committee on aging of the senate and the commission, on the results of the study conducted under subsection a , including  1 an analysis of the mechanisms for trading, quality of trade executions, market transparency, trade reporting, price discovery, settlement clearing, and credit enhancements   2 the needs of the markets and investors and the impact of recent innovations   3 recommendations for how to improve the transparency, efficiency, fairness, and liquidity of trading in the municipal securities markets, including with reference to items listed in paragraph 1 and   4 potential uses of derivatives in the municipal securities markets    c responses not later than 180 days after receipt of the report required under subsection b , the commission shall submit a response to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate, and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives, with a copy to the special committee on aging of the senate, stating the actions the commission has taken in response to the recommendations contained in such report    sec 978 funding for governmental accounting standards board  a amendment to the securities act of 1933 section 19 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77s , as amended by section 912, is further amended by adding at the end the following  g funding for the gasb  1 in general the commission may, subject to the limitations imposed by section 15b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78o4 , require a national securities association registered under the securities exchange act of 1934 to establish  a a reasonable annual accounting support fee to adequately fund the annual budget of the governmental accounting standards board referred to in this subsection as the gasb and   b rules and procedures, in consultation with the principal organizations representing state governors, legislators, local elected officials, and state and local finance officers, to provide for the equitable allocation, assessment, and collection of the accounting support fee established under subparagraph a from the members of the association, and the remittance of all such accounting support fees to the financial accounting foundation    2 annual budget for purposes of this subsection, the annual budget of the gasb is the annual budget reviewed and approved according to the internal procedures of the financial accounting foundation   3 use of funds any fees or funds collected under this subsection shall be used to support the efforts of the gasb to establish standards of financial accounting and reporting recognized as generally accepted accounting principles applicable to state and local governments of the united states   4 limitation on fee the annual accounting support fees collected under this subsection for a fiscal year shall not exceed the recoverable annual budgeted expenses of the gasb which may include operating expenses, capital, and accrued items   5 rules of construction  a fees not public monies accounting support fees collected under this subsection and other receipts of the gasb shall not be considered public monies of the united states   b limitation on authority of the commission nothing in this subsection shall be construed to  i provide the commission or any national securities association direct or indirect oversight of the budget or technical agenda of the gasb or   ii affect the setting of generally accepted accounting principles by the gasb    c noninterference with states nothing in this subsection shall be construed to impair or limit the authority of a state or local government to establish accounting and financial reporting standards       b study of funding for governmental accounting standards board  1 study the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study that evaluates  a the role and importance of the governmental accounting standards board in the municipal securities markets and   b the manner and the level at which the governmental accounting standards board has been funded    2 consultation in conducting the study required under paragraph 1 , the comptroller general shall consult with the principal organizations representing state governors, legislators, local elected officials, and state and local finance officers   3 report not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the study required under paragraph 1     sec 979 commission office of municipal securities  a in general there shall be in the commission an office of municipal securities, which shall  1 administer the rules of the commission with respect to the practices of municipal securities brokers and dealers, municipal securities advisors, municipal securities investors, and municipal securities issuers and   2 coordinate with the municipal securities rulemaking board for rulemaking and enforcement actions as required by law    b director of the office the head of the office of municipal securities shall be the director, who shall report to the chairman   c staffing  1 in general the office of municipal securities shall be staffed sufficiently to carry out the requirements of this section   2 requirement the staff of the office of municipal securities shall include individuals with knowledge of and expertise in municipal finance      subtitle i public company accounting oversight board, portfolio margining, and other matters  sec 981 authority to share certain information with foreign authorities  a definition section 2 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7201 a is amended by adding at the end the following  17 foreign auditor oversight authority the term foreign auditor oversight authority means any governmental body or other entity empowered by a foreign government to conduct inspections of public accounting firms or otherwise to administer or enforce laws related to the regulation of public accounting firms     b availability to share information section 105 b 5 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 b 5 is amended by adding at the end the following  c availability to foreign oversight authorities without the loss of its status as confidential and privileged in the hands of the board, all information referred to in subparagraph a that relates to a public accounting firm that a foreign government has empowered a foreign auditor oversight authority to inspect or otherwise enforce laws with respect to, may, at the discretion of the board, be made available to the foreign auditor oversight authority, if  i the board finds that it is necessary to accomplish the purposes of this act or to protect investors   ii the foreign auditor oversight authority provides  i such assurances of confidentiality as the board may request   ii a description of the applicable information systems and controls of the foreign auditor oversight authority and   iii a description of the laws and regulations of the foreign government of the foreign auditor oversight authority that are relevant to information access and    iii the board determines that it is appropriate to share such information      c conforming amendment section 105 b 5 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 b 5 a is amended by striking subparagraph b and inserting subparagraphs b and c    sec 982 oversight of brokers and dealers  a definitions  1 definitions amended title i of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7201 et seq is amended by adding at the end the following new section  sec 110 definitions  for the purposes of this title, the following definitions shall apply    2 audit report the term audit report means a document, report, notice, or other record  a prepared following an audit performed for purposes of compliance by an issuer, broker, or dealer with the requirements of the securities laws and   b in which a public accounting firm either  i sets forth the opinion of that firm regarding a financial statement, report, notice, or other document, procedures, or controls or   ii asserts that no such opinion can be expressed     3 broker the term broker means a broker as such term is defined in section 3 a 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a 4 that is required to file a balance sheet, income statement, or other financial statement under section 17 e 1 a of such act 15 usc 78q e 1 a , where such balance sheet, income statement, or financial statement is required to be certified by a registered public accounting firm   4 dealer the term dealer means a dealer as such term is defined in section 3 a 5 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a 5 that is required to file a balance sheet, income statement, or other financial statement under section 17 e 1 a of such act 15 usc 78q e 1 a , where such balance sheet, income statement, or financial statement is required to be certified by a registered public accounting firm   5 professional standards the term professional standards means  a accounting principles that are  i established by the standard setting body described in section 19 b of the securities act of 1933, as amended by this act, or prescribed by the commission under section 19 a of that act 15 usc 17a s or section 13 b of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a m and   ii relevant to audit reports for particular issuers, brokers, or dealers, or dealt with in the quality control system of a particular registered public accounting firm and    b auditing standards, standards for attestation engagements, quality control policies and procedures, ethical and competency standards, and independence standards including rules implementing title ii that the board or the commission determines  i relate to the preparation or issuance of audit reports for issuers, brokers, or dealers and   ii are established or adopted by the board under section 103 a , or are promulgated as rules of the commission     6 self-regulatory organization the term self-regulatory organization has the same meaning as in section 3 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a      2 conforming amendment section 2 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7201 a is amended in the matter preceding paragraph 1 , by striking in this and inserting except as otherwise specifically provided in this act, in this    b establishment and administration of the public company accounting oversight board section 101 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7211 is amended  1 by striking issuers each place that term appears and inserting issuers, brokers, and dealers and   2 in subsection a  a by striking public companies and inserting companies and   b by striking for companies the securities of which are sold to, and held by and for, public investors     c registration with the board section 102 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7212 is amended  1 in subsection a  a by striking beginning 180 and all that follows through 101 d , it and inserting it and   b by striking issuer and inserting issuer, broker, or dealer    2 in subsection b  a in paragraph 2 a , by striking issuers and inserting issuers, brokers, and dealers and   b by striking issuer each place that term appears and inserting issuer, broker, or dealer     d auditing and independence section 103 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7213 a is amended  1 in paragraph 1 , by striking and such ethics standards and inserting such ethics standards, and such independence standards   2 in paragraph 2 a iii , by striking describe in each audit report and inserting in each audit report for an issuer, describe and   3 in paragraph 2 b i , by striking issuers and inserting issuers, brokers, and dealers    e inspections of registered public accounting firms  1 amendments section 104 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7214 a is amended  a by striking the board shall and inserting the following  1 inspections generally the board shall   and   b by adding at the end the following  2 inspections of audit reports for brokers and dealers  a the board may, by rule, conduct and require a program of inspection in accordance with paragraph 1 , on a basis to be determined by the board, of registered public accounting firms that provide one or more audit reports for a broker or dealer the board, in establishing such a program, may allow for differentiation among classes of brokers and dealers, as appropriate   b if the board determines to establish a program of inspection pursuant to subparagraph a , the board shall consider in establishing any inspection schedules whether differing schedules would be appropriate with respect to registered public accounting firms that issue audit reports only for one or more brokers or dealers that do not receive, handle, or hold customer securities or cash or are not a member of the securities investor protection corporation   c any rules of the board pursuant to this paragraph shall be subject to prior approval by the commission pursuant to section 107 b before the rules become effective, including an opportunity for public notice and comment   d notwithstanding anything to the contrary in section 102 of this act, a public accounting firm shall not be required to register with the board if the public accounting firm is exempt from the inspection program which may be established by the board under subparagraph a       2 conforming amendment section 17 e 1 a of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78q e 1 a is amended by striking registered public accounting firm and inserting independent public accounting firm, or by a registered public accounting firm if the firm is required to be registered under the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002,    f investigations and disciplinary proceedings section 105 c 7 b of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 c 7 b is amended  1 in the subparagraph heading, by inserting , broker, or dealer after issuer   2 by striking any issuer each place that term appears and inserting any issuer, broker, or dealer and   3 by striking an issuer under this subsection and inserting a registered public accounting firm under this subsection    g foreign public accounting firms section 106 a of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7216 a is amended  1 in paragraph 1 , by striking issuer and inserting issuer, broker, or dealer and   2 in paragraph 2 , by striking issuers and inserting issuers, brokers, or dealers    h funding section 109 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7219 is amended  1 in subsection c 2 , by striking subsection i and inserting subsection j   2 in subsection d  a in paragraph 2 , by striking allowing for differentiation among classes of issuers, as appropriate and inserting and among brokers and dealers, in accordance with subsection h , and allowing for differentiation among classes of issuers, brokers and dealers, as appropriate and   b by adding at the end the following  3 brokers and dealers the board shall begin the allocation, assessment, and collection of fees under paragraph 2 with respect to brokers and dealers with the payment of support fees to fund the first full fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of the investor protection and securities reform act of 2010      3 by redesignating subsections h , i , and j as subsections i , j , and k , respectively and   4 by inserting after subsection g the following  h allocation of accounting support fees among brokers and dealers  1 obligation to pay each broker or dealer shall pay to the board the annual accounting support fee allocated to such broker or dealer under this section   2 allocation any amount due from a broker or dealer or from a particular class of brokers and dealers under this section shall be allocated among brokers and dealers and payable by the broker or dealer or the brokers and dealers in the particular class, as applicable   3 proportionality the amount due from a broker or dealer shall be in proportion to the net capital of the broker or dealer before or after any adjustments , compared to the total net capital of all brokers and dealers before or after any adjustments , in accordance with rules issued by the board       i referral of investigations to a self-regulatory organization section 105 b 4 b of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 b 4 b is amended  1 by redesignating clauses ii and iii as clauses iii and iv , respectively and   2 by inserting after clause i the following  ii to a self-regulatory organization, in the case of an investigation that concerns an audit report for a broker or dealer that is under the jurisdiction of such self-regulatory organization      j use of documents related to an inspection or investigation section 105 b 5 b ii of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7215 b 5 b ii is amended  1 in subclause iii , by striking and at the end   2 in subclause iv , by striking the comma and inserting and and   3 by inserting after subclause iv the following  v a self-regulatory organization, with respect to an audit report for a broker or dealer that is under the jurisdiction of such self-regulatory organization,       sec 983 portfolio margining  a advances section 9 a 1 of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78fff3 a 1 is amended by inserting or options on commodity futures contracts after claim for securities   b definitions section 16 of the securities investor protection act of 1970 15 usc 78lll is amended  1 by striking paragraph 2 and inserting the following  2 customer  a in general the term customer of a debtor means any person including any person with whom the debtor deals as principal or agent who has a claim on account of securities received, acquired, or held by the debtor in the ordinary course of its business as a broker or dealer from or for the securities accounts of such person for safekeeping, with a view to sale, to cover consummated sales, pursuant to purchases, as collateral, security, or for purposes of effecting transfer   b included persons the term customer includes  i any person who has deposited cash with the debtor for the purpose of purchasing securities   ii any person who has a claim against the debtor for cash, securities, futures contracts, or options on futures contracts received, acquired, or held in a portfolio margining account carried as a securities account pursuant to a portfolio margining program approved by the commission and   iii any person who has a claim against the debtor arising out of sales or conversions of such securities    c excluded persons the term customer does not include any person, to the extent that  i the claim of such person arises out of transactions with a foreign subsidiary of a member of sipc or   ii such person has a claim for cash or securities which by contract, agreement, or understanding, or by operation of law, is part of the capital of the debtor, or is subordinated to the claims of any or all creditors of the debtor, notwithstanding that some ground exists for declaring such contract, agreement, or understanding void or voidable in a suit between the claimant and the debtor       2 in paragraph 4  a in subparagraph c , by striking and at the end   b by redesignating subparagraph d as subparagraph e and   c by inserting after subparagraph c the following  d in the case of a portfolio margining account of a customer that is carried as a securities account pursuant to a portfolio margining program approved by the commission, a futures contract or an option on a futures contract received, acquired, or held by or for the account of a debtor from or for such portfolio margining account, and the proceeds thereof and      3 in paragraph 9 , in the matter following subparagraph l , by inserting after such term the following includes revenues earned by a broker or dealer in connection with a transaction in the portfolio margining account of a customer carried as securities accounts pursuant to a portfolio margining program approved by the commission such term and   4 in paragraph 11  a in subparagraph a  i by striking filing date, all and all that follows through the end of the subparagraph and inserting the following filing date  i all securities positions of such customer other than customer name securities reclaimed by such customer and   ii all positions in futures contracts and options on futures contracts held in a portfolio margining account carried as a securities account pursuant to a portfolio margining program approved by the commission, including all property collateralizing such positions, to the extent that such property is not otherwise included herein minus   and    b in the matter following subparagraph c , by striking in determining and inserting the following a claim for a commodity futures contract received, acquired, or held in a portfolio margining account pursuant to a portfolio margining program approved by the commission or a claim for a security futures contract, shall be deemed to be a claim with respect to such contract as of the filing date, and such claim shall be treated as a claim for cash in determining      sec 984 loan or borrowing of securities  a rulemaking authority section 10 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78j is amended by adding at the end the following  c  1 to effect, accept, or facilitate a transaction involving the loan or borrowing of securities in contravention of such rules and regulations as the commission may prescribe as necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors  2 nothing in paragraph 1 may be construed to limit the authority of the appropriate federal banking agency as defined in section 3 q of the federal deposit insurance act 12 usc 1813 q , the national credit union administration, or any other federal department or agency having a responsibility under federal law to prescribe rules or regulations restricting transactions involving the loan or borrowing of securities in order to protect the safety and soundness of a financial institution or to protect the financial system from systemic risk       b rulemaking required not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this act, the commission shall promulgate rules that are designed to increase the transparency of information available to brokers, dealers, and investors, with respect to the loan or borrowing of securities    sec 985 technical corrections to federal securities laws  a securities act of 1933 the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77a et seq is amended  1 in section 3 a 4 15 usc 77c a 4 , by striking individual and inserting individual,   2 in section 18 15 usc 77r  a in subsection b 1 c , by striking is a security and inserting a security and   b in subsection c 2 b i , by striking state, or and inserting state or    3 in section 19 d 6 a 15 usc 77s d 6 a , by striking in paragraph 1 of 3 and inserting in paragraph 1 or 3 and   4 in section 27a c 1 b ii 15 usc 77z2 c 1 b ii , by striking business entity and inserting business entity,    b securities exchange act of 1934 the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78a et seq is amended  1 in section 2 15 usc 78b , by striking affected and inserting effected   2 in section 3 15 usc 78c  a in subsection a 55 a , by striking section 3 a 12 of the securities exchange act of 1934 and inserting section 3 a 12 of this title and   b in subsection g , by striking company, account person, or entity and inserting company, account, person, or entity    3 in section 10a i 1 b 15 usc 78j1 i 1 b  a in the subparagraph heading, by striking minimus and inserting minimis and   b in clause i , by striking nonaudit and inserting non-audit    4 in section 13 b 1 15 usc 78m b 1 , by striking earning statement and inserting earnings statement   5 in section 15 15 usc 78o  a in subsection b 1  i in subparagraph b , by striking the order granting and all that follows through from such membership and   ii in the undesignated matter immediately following subparagraph b , by inserting after the first sentence the following the order granting registration shall not be effective until such broker or dealer has become a member of a registered securities association, or until such broker or dealer has become a member of a national securities exchange, if such broker or dealer effects transactions solely on that exchange, unless the commission has exempted such broker or dealer, by rule or order, from such membership     6 in section 15c a 2 15 usc 78o5 a 2  a by redesignating clauses i and ii as subparagraphs a and b , respectively, and adjusting the subparagraph margins accordingly   b in subparagraph b , as so redesignated, by striking the order granting and all that follows through from such membership and   c in the matter following subparagraph b , as so redesignated, by inserting after the first sentence the following the order granting registration shall not be effective until such government securities broker or government securities dealer has become a member of a national securities exchange registered under section 6 of this title, or a securities association registered under section 15a of this title, unless the commission has exempted such government securities broker or government securities dealer, by rule or order, from such membership    7 in section 17 b 1 b 15 usc 78q b 1 b , by striking 15a k gives and inserting 15a k , give and   8 in section 21c c 2 15 usc 78u3 c 2 , by striking paragraph 1 subsection and inserting paragraph 1    c trust indenture act of 1939 the trust indenture act of 1939 15 usc 77aaa et seq is amended  1 in section 304 b 15 usc 77ddd b , by striking section 2 of such act and inserting section 2 a of such act and   2 in section 317 a 1 15 usc 77qqq a 1 , by striking , in the and inserting in the    d investment company act of 1940 the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a1 et seq is amended  1 in section 2 a 19 15 usc 80a2 a 19 , in the matter following subparagraph b vii  a by striking clause vi each place that term appears and inserting clause vii and   b in each of subparagraphs a vi and b vi , by adding and at the end of subclause iii    2 in section 9 b 4 b 15 usc 80a9 b 4 b , by adding or after the semicolon at the end   3 in section 12 d 1 j 15 usc 80a12 d 1 j , by striking any provision of this subsection and inserting any provision of this paragraph   4 in section 17 f 15 usc 80a17 f  a in paragraph 4 , by striking no such member and inserting no member of a national securities exchange and   b in paragraph 6 , by striking company may serve and inserting company, may serve and    5 in section 61 a 3 b iii 15 usc 80a60 a 3 b iii  a by striking paragraph 1 of section 205 and inserting section 205 a 1 and   b by striking clause a or b of that section and inserting paragraph 1 or 2 of section 205 b     e investment advisers act of 1940 the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b1 et seq is amended  1 in section 203 15 usc 80b3  a in subsection c 1 a , by striking principal business office and and inserting principal office, principal place of business, and and   b in subsection k 4 b , in the matter following clause ii , by striking principal place of business and inserting principal office or place of business    2 in section 206 3 15 usc 80b6 3 , by adding or after the semicolon at the end   3 in section 213 a 15 usc 80b13 a , by striking principal place of business and inserting principal office or place of business and   4 in section 222 15 usc 80b18a , by striking principal place of business each place that term appears and inserting principal office and place of business     sec 986 conforming amendments relating to repeal of the public utility holding company act of 1935  a securities exchange act of 1934 the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78 et seq is amended  1 in section 3 a 47 15 usc 78c a 47 , by striking the public utility holding company act of 1935 15 usc 79a et seq ,   2 in section 12 k 15 usc 78l k , by amending paragraph 7 to read as follows  7 definition for purposes of this subsection, the term emergency means  a a major market disturbance characterized by or constituting  i sudden and excessive fluctuations of securities prices generally, or a substantial threat thereof, that threaten fair and orderly markets or   ii a substantial disruption of the safe or efficient operation of the national system for clearance and settlement of transactions in securities, or a substantial threat thereof or    b a major disturbance that substantially disrupts, or threatens to substantially disrupt  i the functioning of securities markets, investment companies, or any other significant portion or segment of the securities markets or   ii the transmission or processing of securities transactions     and   3 in section 21 h 2 15 usc 78u h 2 , by striking section 18 c of the public utility holding company act of 1935,    b trust indenture act of 1939 the trust indenture act of 1939 15 usc 77aaa et seq is amended  1 in section 303 15 usc 77ccc , by striking paragraph 17 and inserting the following  17 the terms securities act of 1933 and securities exchange act of 1934 shall be deemed to refer, respectively, to such acts, as amended, whether amended prior to or after the enactment of this title     2 in section 308 15 usc 77hhh , by striking securities act of 1933, the securities exchange act of 1934, or the public utility holding company act of 1935 each place that term appears and inserting securities act of 1933 or the securities exchange act of 1934   3 in section 310 15 usc 77jjj , by striking subsection c   4 in section 311 15 usc 77kkk , by striking subsection c   5 in section 323 b 15 usc 77www b , by striking securities act of 1933, or the securities exchange act of 1934, or the public utility holding company act of 1935 and inserting securities act of 1933 or the securities exchange act of 1934 and   6 in section 326 15 usc 77zzz , by striking securities act of 1933, or the securities exchange act of 1934, or the public utility holding company act of 1935, and inserting securities act of 1933 or the securities exchange act of 1934    c investment company act of 1940 the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a1 et seq is amended  1 in section 2 a 44 15 usc 80a2 a 44 , by striking public utility holding company act of 1935 ,   2 in section 3 c 15 usc 80a3 c , by striking paragraph 8 and inserting the following  8 repealed     3 in section 38 b 15 usc 80a37 b , by striking the public utility holding company act of 1935, and   4 in section 50 15 usc 80a49 , by striking the public utility holding company act of 1935,    d investment advisers act of 1940 section 202 a 21 of the investment advisers act of 1940 15 usc 80b2 a 21 is amended by striking public utility holding company act of 1935 ,    sec 987 amendment to definition of material loss and nonmaterial losses to the deposit insurance fund for purposes of inspector general reviews  a in general section 38 k of the federal deposit insurance act usc 1831o k is amended  1 in paragraph 2 , by striking subparagraph b and inserting the following  b material loss defined the term material loss means any estimated loss in excess of  i $200,000,000, if the loss occurs during the period beginning on january 1, 2010, and ending on december 31, 2011   ii $150,000,000, if the loss occurs during the period beginning on january 1, 2012, and ending on december 31, 2013 and   iii $50,000,000, if the loss occurs on or after january 1, 2014, provided that if the inspector general of a federal banking agency certifies to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives that the number of projected failures of depository institutions that would require material loss reviews for the following 12 months will be greater than 30 and would hinder the effectiveness of its oversight functions, then the definition of material loss shall be $75,000,000 for a duration of 1 year from the date of the certification      2 in paragraph 4 a by striking the report and inserting any report on losses required under this subsection,   3 by striking paragraph 6   4 by redesignating paragraph 5 as paragraph 6 and   5 by inserting after paragraph 4 the following  5 losses that are not material  a semiannual report for the 6-month period ending on march 31, 2010, and each 6-month period thereafter, the inspector general of each federal banking agency shall  i identify losses that the inspector general estimates have been incurred by the deposit insurance fund during that 6-month period, with respect to the insured depository institutions supervised by the federal banking agency   ii for each loss incurred by the deposit insurance fund that is not a material loss, determine  i the grounds identified by the federal banking agency or state bank supervisor for appointing the corporation as receiver under section 11 c 5 and   ii whether any unusual circumstances exist that might warrant an in-depth review of the loss and    iii prepare and submit a written report to the appropriate federal banking agency and to congress on the results of any determination by the inspector general, including  i an identification of any loss that warrants an in-depth review, together with the reasons why such review is warranted, or, if the inspector general determines that no review is warranted, an explanation of such determination and   ii for each loss identified under subclause i that warrants an in-depth review, the date by which such review, and a report on such review prepared in a manner consistent with reports under paragraph 1 a , will be completed and submitted to the federal banking agency and congress     b deadline for semiannual report the inspector general of each federal banking agency shall  i submit each report required under paragraph a expeditiously, and not later than 90 days after the end of the 6-month period covered by the report and   ii provide a copy of the report required under paragraph a to any member of congress, upon request        b technical and conforming amendment the heading for subsection k of section 38 of the federal deposit insurance act usc 1831o k is amended to read as follows  k reviews required when deposit insurance fund incurs losses      sec 988 amendment to definition of material loss and nonmaterial losses to the national credit union share insurance fund for purposes of inspector general reviews  a in general section 216 j of the federal credit union act 12 usc 1790d j is amended to read as follows  j reviews required when share insurance fund experiences losses  1 in general if the fund incurs a material loss with respect to an insured credit union, the inspector general of the board shall  a submit to the board a written report reviewing the supervision of the credit union by the administration including the implementation of this section by the administration , which shall include  i a description of the reasons why the problems of the credit union resulted in a material loss to the fund and   ii recommendations for preventing any such loss in the future and    b submit a copy of the report under subparagraph a to  i the comptroller general of the united states   ii the corporation   iii in the case of a report relating to a state credit union, the appropriate state supervisor and   iv to any member of congress, upon request     2 material loss defined for purposes of determining whether the fund has incurred a material loss with respect to an insured credit union, a loss is material if it exceeds the sum of  a $25,000,000 and   b an amount equal to 10 percent of the total assets of the credit union on the date on which the board initiated assistance under section 208 or was appointed liquidating agent    3 public disclosure required  a in general the board shall disclose a report under this subsection, upon request under section 552 of title 5, united states code, without excising  i any portion under section 552 b 5 of title 5, united states code or   ii any information about the insured credit union other than trade secrets under section 552 b 8 of title 5, united states code    b rule of construction subparagraph a may not be construed as requiring the agency to disclose the name of any customer of the insured credit union other than an institution-affiliated party , or information from which the identity of such customer could reasonably be ascertained    4 losses that are not material  a semiannual report for the 6-month period ending on march 31, 2010, and each 6-month period thereafter, the inspector general of the board shall  i identify any losses that the inspector general estimates were incurred by the fund during such 6-month period, with respect to insured credit unions   ii for each loss to the fund that is not a material loss, determine  i the grounds identified by the board or the state official having jurisdiction over a state credit union for appointing the board as the liquidating agent for any federal or state credit union and   ii whether any unusual circumstances exist that might warrant an in-depth review of the loss and    iii prepare and submit a written report to the board and to congress on the results of the determinations of the inspector general that includes  i an identification of any loss that warrants an in-depth review, and the reasons such review is warranted, or if the inspector general determines that no review is warranted, an explanation of such determination and   ii for each loss identified in subclause i that warrants an in-depth review, the date by which such review, and a report on the review prepared in a manner consistent with reports under paragraph 1 a , will be completed     b deadline for semiannual report the inspector general of the board shall  i submit each report required under subparagraph a expeditiously, and not later than 90 days after the end of the 6-month period covered by the report and   ii provide a copy of the report required under subparagraph a to any member of congress, upon request     5 gao review the comptroller general of the united states shall, under such conditions as the comptroller general determines to be appropriate  a review each report made under paragraph 1 , including the extent to which the inspector general of the board complied with the requirements under section 8l of the inspector general act of 1978 5 usc app with respect to each such report and   b recommend improvements to the supervision of insured credit unions including improvements relating to the implementation of this section        sec 989 government accountability office study on proprietary trading  a definitions in this section  1 the term covered entity means  a an insured depository institution, an affiliate of an insured depository institution, a bank holding company, a financial holding company, or a subsidiary of a bank holding company or a financial holding company, as those terms are defined in the bank holding company act of 1956 12 usc 1841 et seq and   b any other entity, as the comptroller general of the united states may determine and    2 the term proprietary trading means the act of a covered entity investing as a principal in securities, commodities, derivatives, hedge funds, private equity firms, or such other financial products or entities as the comptroller general may determine    b study  1 in general the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study regarding the risks and conflicts associated with proprietary trading by and within covered entities, including an evaluation of  a whether proprietary trading presents a material systemic risk to the stability of the united states financial system, and if so, the costs and benefits of options for mitigating such systemic risk   b whether proprietary trading presents material risks to the safety and soundness of the covered entities that engage in such activities, and if so, the costs and benefits of options for mitigating such risks   c whether proprietary trading presents material conflicts of interest between covered entities that engage in proprietary trading and the clients of the institutions who use the firm to execute trades or who rely on the firm to manage assets, and if so, the costs and benefits of options for mitigating such conflicts of interest   d whether adequate disclosure regarding the risks and conflicts of proprietary trading is provided to the depositors, trading and asset management clients, and investors of covered entities that engage in proprietary trading, and if not, the costs and benefits of options for the improvement of such disclosure and   e whether the banking, securities, and commodities regulators of institutions that engage in proprietary trading have in place adequate systems and controls to monitor and contain any risks and conflicts of interest related to proprietary trading, and if not, the costs and benefits of options for the improvement of such systems and controls    2 considerations in carrying out the study required under paragraph 1 , the comptroller general shall consider  a current practice relating to proprietary trading   b the advisability of a complete ban on proprietary trading   c limitations on the scope of activities that covered entities may engage in with respect to proprietary trading   d the advisability of additional capital requirements for covered entities that engage in proprietary trading   e enhanced restrictions on transactions between affiliates related to proprietary trading   f enhanced accounting disclosures relating to proprietary trading   g enhanced public disclosure relating to proprietary trading and   h any other options the comptroller general deems appropriate     c report to congress not later than 15 months after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit a report to congress on the results of the study conducted under subsection b   d access by comptroller general for purposes of conducting the study required under subsection b , the comptroller general shall have access, upon request, to any information, data, schedules, books, accounts, financial records, reports, files, electronic communications, or other papers, things, or property belonging to or in use by a covered entity that engages in proprietary trading, and to the officers, directors, employees, independent public accountants, financial advisors, staff, and agents and representatives of a covered entity as related to the activities of the agent or representative on behalf of the covered entity , at such reasonable times as the comptroller general may request the comptroller general may make and retain copies of books, records, accounts, and other records, as the comptroller general deems appropriate   e confidentiality of reports  1 in general except as provided in paragraph 2 , the comptroller general may not disclose information regarding  a any proprietary trading activity of a covered entity, unless such information is disclosed at a level of generality that does not reveal the investment or trading position or strategy of the covered entity for any specific security, commodity, derivative, or other investment or financial product or   b any individual interviewed by the comptroller general for purposes of the study under subsection b , unless such information is disclosed at a level of generality that does not reveal  i the name of or identifying details relating to such individual or   ii in the case of an individual who is an employee of a third party that provides professional services to a covered entity believed to be engaged in proprietary trading, the name of or any identifying details relating to such third party     2 exceptions the comptroller general may disclose the information described in paragraph 1  a to a department, agency, or official of the federal government, for official use, upon request   b to a committee of congress, upon request and   c to a court, upon an order of such court      sec 989a senior investor protections  a definitions as used in this section  1 the term eligible entity means  a a securities commission or any agency or office performing like functions of a state that the office determines has adopted rules on the appropriate use of designations in the offer or sale of securities or the provision of investment advice that meet or exceed the minimum requirements of the nasaa model rule on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations or any successor thereto   b the insurance commission or any agency or office performing like functions of any state that the office determines has  i adopted rules on the appropriate use of designations in the sale of insurance products that, to the extent practicable, conform to the minimum requirements of the national association of insurance commissioners model regulation on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations in the sale of life insurance and annuities or any successor thereto and   ii adopted rules with respect to fiduciary or suitability requirements in the sale of annuities that meet or exceed the minimum requirements established by the suitability in annuity transactions model regulation of the national association of insurance commissioners or any successor thereto or    c a consumer protection agency of any state, if  i the securities commission or any agency or office performing like functions of the state is eligible under subparagraph a or   ii the insurance commission or any agency or office performing like functions of the state is eligible under subparagraph b     2 the term financial product means a security, an insurance product including an insurance product that pays a return, whether fixed or variable , a bank product, and a loan product   3 the term misleading designation  a means a certification, professional designation, or other purported credential that indicates or implies that a salesperson or adviser has special certification or training in advising or servicing seniors and   b does not include a certification, professional designation, license, or other credential that  i was issued by or obtained from an academic institution having regional accreditation   ii meets the standards for certifications and professional designations outlined by the nasaa model rule on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations or any successor thereto or by the model regulations on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations in the sale of life insurance and annuities, adopted by the national association of insurance commissioners or any successor thereto or   iii was issued by or obtained from a state     4 the term misleading or fraudulent marketing means the use of a misleading designation by a person that sells to or advises a senior in connection with the sale of a financial product   5 the term nasaa means the north american securities administrators association   6 the term office means the office of financial literacy of the bureau   7 the term senior means any individual who has attained the age of 62 years or older and   8 the term state has the same meaning as in section 3 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78c a    b grants to states for enhanced protection of seniors from being misled by false designations the office shall establish a program under which the office may make grants to states or eligible entities  1 to hire staff to identify, investigate, and prosecute through civil, administrative, or criminal enforcement actions cases involving misleading or fraudulent marketing   2 to fund technology, equipment, and training for regulators, prosecutors, and law enforcement officers, in order to identify salespersons and advisers who target seniors through the use of misleading designations   3 to fund technology, equipment, and training for prosecutors to increase the successful prosecution of salespersons and advisers who target seniors with the use of misleading designations   4 to provide educational materials and training to regulators on the appropriateness of the use of designations by salespersons and advisers in connection with the sale and marketing of financial products   5 to provide educational materials and training to seniors to increase awareness and understanding of misleading or fraudulent marketing   6 to develop comprehensive plans to combat misleading or fraudulent marketing of financial products to seniors and   7 to enhance provisions of state law to provide protection for seniors against misleading or fraudulent marketing    c applications a state or eligible entity desiring a grant under this section shall submit an application to the office, in such form and in such a manner as the office may determine, that includes  1 a proposal for activities to protect seniors from misleading or fraudulent marketing that are proposed to be funded using a grant under this section, including  a an identification of the scope of the problem of misleading or fraudulent marketing in the state   b a description of how the proposed activities would  i protect seniors from misleading or fraudulent marketing in the sale of financial products, including by proactively identifying victims of misleading and fraudulent marketing who are seniors   ii assist in the investigation and prosecution of those using misleading or fraudulent marketing and   iii discourage and reduce cases of misleading or fraudulent marketing and    c a description of how the proposed activities would be coordinated with other state efforts and    2 any other information, as the office determines is appropriate    d performance objectives and reporting requirements the office may establish such performance objectives and reporting requirements for states and eligible entities receiving a grant under this section as the office determines are necessary to carry out and assess the effectiveness of the program under this section   e maximum amount the amount of a grant under this section may not exceed  1 $500,000 for each of 3 consecutive fiscal years, if the recipient is a state, or an eligible entity of a state, that has adopted rules  a on the appropriate use of designations in the offer or sale of securities or investment advice that meet or exceed the minimum requirements of the nasaa model rule on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations or any successor thereto   b on the appropriate use of designations in the sale of insurance products that, to the extent practicable, conform to the minimum requirements of the national association of insurance commissioners model regulation on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations in the sale of life insurance and annuities or any successor thereto and   c with respect to fiduciary or suitability requirements in the sale of annuities that meet or exceed the minimum requirements established by the suitability in annuity transactions model regulation of the national association of insurance commissioners or any successor thereto and    2 $100,000 for each of 3 consecutive fiscal years, if the recipient is a state, or an eligible entity of a state, that has adopted  a rules on the appropriate use of designations in the offer or sale of securities or investment advice that meet or exceed the minimum requirements of the nasaa model rule on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations or any successor thereto or   b rules  i on the appropriate use of designations in the sale of insurance products that, to the extent practicable, conform to the minimum requirements of the national association of insurance commissioners model regulation on the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations in the sale of life insurance and annuities or any successor thereto and   ii with respect to fiduciary or suitability requirements in the sale of annuities that meet or exceed the minimum requirements established by the suitability in annuity transactions model regulation of the national association of insurance commissioners or any successor thereto      f subgrants a state or eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may make a subgrant, as the state or eligible entity determines is necessary to carry out the activities funded using a grant under this section   g reapplication a state or eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may reapply for a grant under this section, notwithstanding the limitations on grant amounts under subsection e   h authorization of appropriations there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 through 2015    sec 989b designated federal entity inspectors general independence  section 8g of the inspector general act of 1978 5 usc app is amended  1 in subsection a 4  a in the matter preceding subparagraph a , by inserting the board or commission of the designated federal entity, or in the event the designated federal entity does not have a board or commission, after means   b in subparagraph a , by striking and after the semicolon and   c by adding after subparagraph b the following  c with respect to the federal labor relations authority, such term means the members of the authority described under section 7104 of title 5, united states code   d with respect to the national archives and records administration, such term means the archivist of the united states   e with respect to the national credit union administration, such term means the national credit union administration board described under section 102 of the federal credit union act 12 usc 1752a   f with respect to the national endowment of the arts, such term means the national council on the arts   g with respect to the national endowment for the humanities, such term means the national council on the humanities and   h with respect to the peace corps, such term means the director of the peace corps   and    2 in subsection h , by inserting if the designated federal entity is not a board or commission, include after designated federal entities and     sec 989c strengthening inspector general accountability  section 5 a of the inspector general act of 1978 5 usc app is amended  1 in paragraph 12 , by striking and after the semicolon   2 in paragraph 13 , by striking the period and inserting a semicolon and   3 by adding at the end the following  14  a an appendix containing the results of any peer review conducted by another office of inspector general during the reporting period or   b if no peer review was conducted within that reporting period, a statement identifying the date of the last peer review conducted by another office of inspector general    15 a list of any outstanding recommendations from any peer review conducted by another office of inspector general that have not been fully implemented, including a statement describing the status of the implementation and why implementation is not complete and   16 a list of any peer reviews conducted by the inspector general of another office of the inspector general during the reporting period, including a list of any outstanding recommendations made from any previous peer review including any peer review conducted before the reporting period that remain outstanding or have not been fully implemented       sec 989d removal of inspectors general of designated federal entities  section 8g e of the inspector general act of 1978 5 usc app is amended  1 by redesignating the sentences following e as paragraph 2 and   2 by striking e and inserting the following  e  1 in the case of a designated federal entity for which a board or commission is the head of the designated federal entity, a removal under this subsection may only be made upon the written concurrence of a 2/3 majority of the board or commission        sec 989e additional oversight of financial regulatory system  a council of inspectors general on financial oversight  1 establishment and membership there is established a council of inspectors general on financial oversight in this section referred to as the council of inspectors general chaired by the inspector general of the department of the treasury and composed of the inspectors general of the following  a the board of governors of the federal reserve system   b the commodity futures trading commission   c the department of housing and urban development   d the department of the treasury   e the federal deposit insurance corporation   f the federal housing finance agency   g the national credit union administration   h the securities and exchange commission   i the troubled asset relief program until the termination of the authority of the special inspector general for such program under section 121 k of the emergency economic stabilization act of 2008 12 usc 5231 k    2 duties  a meetings the council of inspectors general shall meet not less than once each quarter, or more frequently if the chair considers it appropriate, to facilitate the sharing of information among inspectors general and to discuss the ongoing work of each inspector general who is a member of the council of inspectors general, with a focus on concerns that may apply to the broader financial sector and ways to improve financial oversight   b annual report each year the council of inspectors general shall submit to the council and to congress a report including  i for each inspector general who is a member of the council of inspectors general, a section within the exclusive editorial control of such inspector general that highlights the concerns and recommendations of such inspector general in such inspector generals ongoing and completed work, with a focus on issues that may apply to the broader financial sector and   ii a summary of the general observations of the council of inspectors general based on the views expressed by each inspector general as required by clause i , with a focus on measures that should be taken to improve financial oversight     3 working groups to evaluate council  a convening a working group the council of inspectors general may, by majority vote, convene a council of inspectors general working group to evaluate the effectiveness and internal operations of the council   b personnel and resources the inspectors general who are members of the council of inspectors general may detail staff and resources to a council of inspectors general working group established under this paragraph to enable it to carry out its duties   c reports a council of inspectors general working group established under this paragraph shall submit regular reports to the council and to congress on its evaluations pursuant to this paragraph     b response to report by council the council shall respond to the concerns raised in the report of the council of inspectors general under subsection a 2 b for such year    sec 989f gao study of person to person lending  a study  1 in general the comptroller general of the united states shall conduct a study of person to person lending to determine the optimal federal regulatory structure   2 consultation in conducting the study required under paragraph 1 , the comptroller general shall consult with federal banking agencies, the commission, consumer groups, outside experts, and the person to person lending industry   3 content of study the study required under paragraph 1 shall include an examination of  a the regulatory structure as it exists on the date of enactment of this act, as determined by the commission, with particular attention to  i the application of the securities act of 1933 to person to person lending platforms   ii the posting of consumer loan information on the edgar database of the commission and   iii the treatment of privately held person to person lending platforms as public companies    b the state and other federal regulators responsible for the oversight and regulation of person to person lending markets   c any federal, state, or local government or private studies of person to person lending completed or in progress on the date of enactment of this act   d consumer privacy and data protections, minimum credit standards, anti-money laundering and risk management in the regulatory structure as it exists on the date of enactment of this act, and whether additional or alternative safeguards are needed and   e the uses of person to person lending     b report  1 in general not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit a report on the study required under subsection a to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives   2 content of report the report required under paragraph 1 shall include alternative regulatory options, including  a the involvement of other federal agencies and   b alternative approaches by the commission and recommendations on whether the alternative approaches are effective      sec 989g exemption for nonaccelerated filers  a exemption section 404 of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 is amended by adding at the end the following  c exemption for smaller issuers subsection b shall not apply with respect to any audit report prepared for an issuer that is neither a large accelerated filer nor an accelerated filer as those terms are defined in rule 12b2 of the commission 17 cfr 24012b2     b study the securities and exchange commission shall conduct a study to determine how the commission could reduce the burden of complying with section 404 b of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 for companies whose market capitalization is between $75,000,000 and $250,000,000 for the relevant reporting period while maintaining investor protections for such companies the study shall also consider whether any such methods of reducing the compliance burden or a complete exemption for such companies from compliance with such section would encourage companies to list on exchanges in the united states in their initial public offerings not later than 9 months after the date of the enactment of this subtitle, the commission shall transmit a report of such study to congress    sec 989h corrective responses by heads of certain establishments to deficiencies identified by inspectors general  the chairman of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, the chairman of the commodity futures trading commission, the chairman of the national credit union administration, the director of the pension benefit guaranty corporation, and the chairman of the securities and exchange commission shall each  1 take action to address deficiencies identified by a report or investigation of the inspector general of the establishment concerned or   2 certify to both houses of congress that no action is necessary or appropriate in connection with a deficiency described in paragraph 1     sec 989i gao study regarding exemption for smaller issuers  a study regarding exemption for smaller issuers the comptroller general of the united states shall carry out a study on the impact of the amendments made by this act to section 404 b of the sarbanes-oxley act of 2002 15 usc 7262 b , which shall include an analysis of  1 whether issuers that are exempt from such section 404 b have fewer or more restatements of published accounting statements than issuers that are required to comply with such section 404 b   2 the cost of capital for issuers that are exempt from such section 404 b compared to the cost of capital for issuers that are required to comply with such section 404 b   3 whether there is any difference in the confidence of investors in the integrity of financial statements of issuers that comply with such section 404 b and issuers that are exempt from compliance with such section 404 b   4 whether issuers that do not receive the attestation for internal controls required under such section 404 b should be required to disclose the lack of such attestation to investors and   5 the costs and benefits to issuers that are exempt from such section 404 b that voluntarily have obtained the attestation of an independent auditor    b report not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this act, the comptroller general shall submit to the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives a report on the results of the study required under subsection a    sec 989j further promoting the adoption of the naic model regulations that enhance protection of seniors and other consumers  a in general the commission shall treat as exempt securities described under section 3 a 8 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77c a 8 any insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract  1 the value of which does not vary according to the performance of a separate account   2 that  a satisfies standard nonforfeiture laws or similar requirements of the applicable state at the time of issue or   b in the absence of applicable standard nonforfeiture laws or requirements, satisfies the model standard nonforfeiture law for life insurance or model standard nonforfeiture law for individual deferred annuities, or any successor model law, as published by the national association of insurance commissioners and    3 that is issued  a on and after june 16, 2013, in a state, or issued by an insurance company that is domiciled in a state, that  i adopts rules that govern suitability requirements in the sale of an insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract, which shall substantially meet or exceed the minimum requirements established by the suitability in annuity transactions model regulation adopted by the national association of insurance commissioners in march 2010 and   ii adopts rules that substantially meet or exceed the minimum requirements of any successor modifications to the model regulations described in subparagraph a within 5 years of the adoption by the association of any further successors thereto or    b by an insurance company that adopts and implements practices on a nationwide basis for the sale of any insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract that meet or exceed the minimum requirements established by the national association of insurance commissioners suitability in annuity transactions model regulation model 275 , and any successor thereto, and is therefore subject to examination by the state of domicile of the insurance company, or by any other state where the insurance company conducts sales of such products, for the purpose of monitoring compliance under this section     b rule of construction nothing in this section shall be construed to affect whether any insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract that is not described in this section is or is not an exempt security under section 3 a 8 of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77c a 8     subtitle j securities and exchange commission match funding  sec 991 securities and exchange commission match funding  a match funding authority  1 amendments section 31 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78ee is amended  a by striking subsection a and inserting the following  a recovery of costs of annual appropriation the commission shall, in accordance with this section, collect transaction fees and assessments that are designed to recover the costs to the government of the annual appropriation to the commission by congress     b in subsection e 2 , by striking september 30 and inserting september 25   c in subsection g , by striking april 30 of the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year to which such rate applies and inserting 30 days after the date on which an act making a regular appropriation to the commission for such fiscal year is enacted   d by striking subsection j and inserting the following  j adjustments to fee rates  1 annual adjustment subject to subsections i 1 b and k , for each fiscal year, the commission shall by order adjust each of the rates applicable under subsections b and c for such fiscal year to a uniform adjusted rate that, when applied to the baseline estimate of the aggregate dollar amount of sales for such fiscal year, is reasonably likely to produce aggregate fee collections under this section including assessments collected under subsection d of this section that are equal to the regular appropriation to the commission by congress for such fiscal year   2 mid-year adjustment subject to subsections i 1 b and k , for each fiscal year, the commission shall determine, by march 1 of such fiscal year, whether, based on the actual aggregate dollar volume of sales during the first 5 months of such fiscal year, the baseline estimate of the aggregate dollar volume of sales used under paragraph 1 for such fiscal year is reasonably likely to be 10 percent or more greater or less than the actual aggregate dollar volume of sales for such fiscal year if the commission so determines, the commission shall by order, no later than march 1, adjust each of the rates applicable under subsections b and c for such fiscal year to a uniform adjusted rate that, when applied to the revised estimate of the aggregate dollar amount of sales for the remainder of such fiscal year, is reasonably likely to produce aggregate fee collections under this section including fees collected during such five-month period and assessments collected under subsection d of this section that are equal to the regular appropriation to the commission by congress for such fiscal year in making such revised estimate, the commission shall, after consultation with the congressional budget office and the office of management and budget, use the same methodology required by subsection l   3 review in exercising its authority under this subsection, the commission shall not be required to comply with the provisions of section 553 of title 5, united states code an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 1 or 2 and published under subsection g shall not be subject to judicial review   4 effective date  a annual adjustment subject to subsections i 1 b and k , an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 1 shall take effect on the later of  i the first day of the fiscal year to which such rate applies or   ii 60 days after the date on which an act making a regular appropriation to the commission for such fiscal year is enacted    b mid-year adjustment an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 2 shall take effect on april 1 of the fiscal year to which such rate applies       e in subsection k , by striking 30 days and inserting 60 days and   f in subsection l , by striking definitions and all that follows through salesthe baseline and inserting baseline estimate of the aggregate dollar amount of salesthe baseline    2 effective date the amendments made by this subsection shall take effect on the later of  a october 1, 2011 or   b the date of enactment of an act making a regular appropriation to the commission for fiscal year 2012     b amendments to registration fee provisions  1 section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b is amended  a by striking offsetting each place that term appears and inserting fee   b by striking paragraphs 1 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 8 , and 9   c by redesignating paragraph 2 as paragraph 1   d by redesignating paragraph 5 as paragraph 2   e by redesignating paragraph 7 as paragraph 3   f by redesignating paragraph 10 as paragraph 5   g by redesignating paragraph 11 as paragraph 6   h in paragraph 1 , as so redesignated, by striking paragraph 5 or 6 and inserting paragraph 2   i in paragraph 2 , as so redesignated  i by striking of the fiscal years 2003 through 2011 and inserting fiscal year and   ii by striking paragraph 2 and inserting paragraph 1    j by inserting after paragraph 3 , as so redesignated, the following  4 review and effective date in exercising its authority under this subsection, the commission shall not be required to comply with the provisions of section 553 of title 5, united states code an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 2 and published under paragraph 5 shall not be subject to judicial review an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 2 shall take effect on the first day of the fiscal year to which such rate applies     k in paragraph 5 , as redesignated, by striking april 30 and inserting august 31   l in paragraph 6 , as so redesignated  i by striking of the fiscal years 2002 through 2011 and inserting fiscal year and   ii by inserting at the end of the table in subparagraph a the following      2 section 13 e of the securities exchange act of 1934 section 13 e of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78m e is amended  a in paragraph 3 , by striking paragraphs 5 and 6 and inserting paragraph 4   b by striking paragraphs 4 , 5 , and 6   c by inserting after paragraph 3 the following  4 annual adjustment for each fiscal year, the commission shall by order adjust the rate required by paragraph 3 for such fiscal year to a rate that is equal to the rate expressed in dollars per million that is applicable under section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 for such fiscal year   5 fee collections fees collected pursuant to this subsection for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be deposited and credited as general revenue of the treasury and shall not be available for obligation   6 effective date publication in exercising its authority under this subsection, the commission shall not be required to comply with the provisions of section 553 of title 5, united states code an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 4 shall be published and take effect in accordance with section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b   and   d by striking paragraphs 8 , 9 , and 10    3 section 14 g of the securities exchange act of 1934 section 14 g of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78n g is amended  a in paragraph 1 , by striking paragraphs 5 and 6 each time that term appears and inserting paragraph 4   b in paragraph 3 , by striking paragraphs 5 and 6 and inserting paragraph 4   c by striking paragraphs 4 , 5 , and 6   d by inserting after paragraph 3 the following  4 annual adjustment for each fiscal year, the commission shall by order adjust the rate required by paragraphs 1 and 3 for such fiscal year to a rate that is equal to the rate expressed in dollars per million that is applicable under section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b for such fiscal year   5 fee collection fees collected pursuant to this subsection for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be deposited and credited as general revenue of the treasury and shall not be available for obligation   6 review effective date publication in exercising its authority under this subsection, the commission shall not be required to comply with the provisions of section 553 of title 5, united states code an adjusted rate prescribed under paragraph 4 shall be published and take effect in accordance with section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b     e by striking paragraphs 8 , 9 , and 10 and   f by redesignating paragraph 11 as paragraph 8    4 effective date the amendments made by this subsection shall take effect on october 1, 2011, except that for fiscal year 2012, the commission shall publish the rate established under section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b , as amended by this act, on august 31, 2011    c authorization of appropriations section 35 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78kk is amended to read as follows  sec 35 authorization of appropriations  in addition to any other funds authorized to be appropriated to the commission, there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the functions, powers, and duties of the commission    2 for fiscal year 2012, $1,500,000,000   3 for fiscal year 2013, $1,750,000,000   4 for fiscal year 2014, $2,000,000,000 and   5 for fiscal year 2015, $2,250,000,000      d transmittal of budget requests  1 amendment section 31 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78ee is amended by adding at the end the following  m transmittal of commission budget requests  1 budget required for fiscal year 2012, and each fiscal year thereafter, the commission shall prepare and submit a budget to the president whenever the commission submits a budget estimate or request to the president or the office of management and budget, the commission shall concurrently transmit copies of the estimate or request to the committee on appropriations of the senate, the committee on appropriations of the house of representatives, the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs of the senate, and the committee on financial services of the house of representatives   2 submission to congress the president shall submit each budget submitted under paragraph 1 to congress, in unaltered form, together with the annual budget for the administration submitted by the president   3 contents the commission shall include in each budget submitted under paragraph 1  a an itemization of the amount of funds necessary to carry out the functions of the commission   b an amount to be designated as contingency funding to be used by the commission to address unanticipated needs and   c a designation of any activities of the commission for which multi-year budget authority would be suitable       2 budget of the president for fiscal year 2012, and each fiscal year thereafter, the annual budget for the administration submitted by the president to congress shall reflect the amendments made by this section    e securities and exchange commission reserve fund  1 amendment section 4 of the securities exchange act of 1934 15 usc 78d , as amended by this act, is amended by adding at the end the following  i securities and exchange commission reserve fund  1 reserve fund established there is established in the treasury of the united states a separate fund, to be known as the securities and exchange commission reserve fund referred to in this subsection as the reserve fund   2 reserve fund amounts  a in general except as provided in subparagraph b , any registration fees collected by the commission under section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b or section 24 f of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a-24 f shall be deposited into the reserve fund   b limitations for any 1 fiscal year  i the amount deposited in the fund may not exceed $50,000,000 and   ii the balance in the fund may not exceed $100,000,000    c excess fees any amounts in excess of the limitations described in subparagraph b that the commission collects from registration fees under section 6 b of the securities act of 1933 15 usc 77f b or section 24 f of the investment company act of 1940 15 usc 80a-24 f shall be deposited in the general fund of the treasury of the united states and shall not be available for obligation by the commission    3 use of amounts in reserve fund the commission may obligate amounts in the reserve fund, not to exceed a total of $100,000,000 in any 1 fiscal year, as the commission determines is necessary to carry out the functions of the commission any amounts in the reserve fund shall remain available until expended not later than 10 days after the date on which the commission obligates amounts under this paragraph, the commission shall notify congress of the date, amount, and purpose of the obligation   4 rule of construction amounts collected and deposited in the reserve fund shall not be construed to be government funds or appropriated monies and shall not be subject to apportionment for the purpose of chapter 15 of title 31, united states code, or under any other authority      2 effective date the amendment made by this subsection shall take effect on october 1, 2011      