Gensler Testifies in Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing on SEC FY24 Budget

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government held a hearing entitled, “A Review of the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.” In his remarks, Subcommittee Chairman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) highlighted that the appropriations bill passed by the full Committee last week included funding of $2.4 billion for the SEC. Ranking Member Bill Hagerty (R-TN) added that the bill passed the Committee unanimously by a vote of 29-0.

Chairman Van Hollen praised SEC Chair Gary Gensler on the implementation of the bipartisan Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act (S.945) and expressed confidence that the Holding Foreign Insiders Accountable Act (S.1169) will be included in the defense spending package under consideration in the Senate. Ranking Member Hagerty said that while Congress needs to fund the SEC’s work, he expressed concern that the SEC is spending money on issues not related to the authority of the SEC, including the climate-related disclosure proposal. He also expressed concern about the SEC’s proposed rules relating to shareholder proposals and adopted rules for proxy advisors.

In his written testimony, Chair Gensler stated the agency’s work has increased substantially, noting that the Division of Enforcement “brought more than 750 enforcement actions in FY 2022, a 9 percent increase over the prior year,” which resulted in orders for $6.4 billion in penalties and disgorgement. He noted technological innovation in the financial services space will require “new tools, expertise, and resources.” Chair Gensler also noted the precipitous rise in assets under management, stating “the combined assets managed by registered investment companies, private funds, and separately managed accounts the Division oversees has surpassed $100 trillion.” He also requested additional funding for updates to the SEC’s cyber technology, noting that his request is “dwarfed by what some of the biggest market participants spend in a month on technology.”

Click here to read a summary of the FSGG Appropriations bill.
Click here to read Chair Gensler’s written testimony.
Click here to watch a video archive of the hearing.